Cost Of Memories
by LyllieKamadli
Summary: Every now and again the future can find you living a life of happiness that you never imagined. But when the past returns with memories that can't be forgotten how do you chose between them and the new life you've made? Rogue/Scott Rogue/Logan Jean/Scott
1. The Mission

**Cost of Memories**

**Chapter One – The Mission**

He couldn't take his eyes off of her when she was like this, so far away in her mind. She was sitting on one of the window seats in the library, her face lit up by the sun with auburn and platinum streaked hair swept aside to one shoulder, a book in her hand that had been long forgotten as she looked out over the mansions grounds biting her lower lip while deep in thought. She had grown so much over these past three years, and now she was teaching two of her own classes and sharing a couple of them with other teachers.

For the past six months she had been teaching U.S. and World Geography; Added to her Hand to Hand combat and Self Defense for the younger mutants whose powers could not really be used to fight. It was amazing to him how she had never let the fact the she had taken the cure change her status as an X-men or her place among them on the team and she was now one of the most loved and adore teachers in the mansion, right along with Ororo and her newly wed husband Doctor Hank McCoy.

Looking at her even now, it seemed like only yesterday that he had helped her to all her classes her first day here at the mansion, and he remember the way she had captured his heart with just a look from those chocolate brown eyes of hers. They had been together for almost two years before everything changed. Well not everything, he had always known that she had never let herself completely fall in love with him. To tell the truth, he didn't really take it personally since she had seemed to be that way with all the people she cared about, keeping apart of herself closed off and hidden to everyone, well expect Logan.

It finally took him meeting Kitty Pride to understand why she had always had that look in her eyes whenever Logan was in sight. Rogue was 23 now, smart, beautiful, and thankfully still one of his best friends. She had been by his side more so than anyone else at the mansion after they had all lost Jean, Scott and Xavier, and had been one of the stronger ones standing right beside Ororo refusing to let the mansion close.

It was strange that someone he had always loved with so much of his heart could still hold her place there while he was completely head over heels for another woman. It was stranger still that in the end she had been the one to let go of him so that he could be with another even though he hadn't wanted to leave her after she had given up so much for them to be together. Hell just recently she had even agreed to be Kitty's maid of honor at their wedding four months ago. She had been more than an angel to him by stepping so graciously aside to let him be with the woman he was truly in love with, Kitty; which was something neither he nor Kitty would ever forget and always be thankful for.

Bobby looked her over once more before he felt his wife's hand slid up his back and come over his shoulder, which was all it took for her to have his complete attention. He in turn wrapped his arm around her shoulders as she nestled her cheek against his chest. "Hey, baby." He said placing a kiss upon her head before they both turned their attention back the distracted woman sitting in the window.

"So how is she, or have you talked to her yet?" she asked with concern written on her face. After the battle at Alcatraz the next year had been bizarre and unexplainable to say the least, and although all of the people at the mansion had endured a lot of pain and confusion it was safe to say that there were four above the rest that had suffered the brunt of it and were still carrying the scars of it today, both emotionally and physically.

It was only five days after the battle that Rogue had returned "cured" so it speak and that very same day she called it off with Bobby telling him that even though he may not be able to admit it to himself she knew that somewhere along the way he had fallen out of love with her and in love with me. She wasn't angry or bitter, I had even asked her once if she had ever loved Bobby because I couldn't bring myself to comprehend how she could not only let go of him so easily but practically hand him over to another woman.

She had simply replied that she had come to a point in her life that it hurt too much to keep lying to herself, and with that she walked away. It was at that moment I learned more about the courageous detached Rogue than I had ever known before. I had come to realize in the next few months I devoted myself to becoming her best friend that before she had taken the cure she may not have been able to have physical contact with anyone but she had been far from untouched. She was beaten up inside, broken in more ways then one and most of that she blamed herself for saying that she had wrapped herself in a delusion of happiness to avoid facing all truth and pain of everything that happened to her along with the other people she carried in her head.

One of the first truths she had forced her self to face was the love she had been sustaining for the gorgeous Wolverine through all the years; and boy oh boy did that ever blown up in her face in more ways than one. It happened only a week after her return. Rogue told her she had heard Logan having another restless night and went to check on him. He had been acting stranger than usual since the night he had been forced to take Jean's life from her in order to save others.

So as Rogue had always done, she went to him that night, and while Logan was in a fit of sorrow and regrets he offered himself to her and after Rogue had waited so long, wanted him for so long she went against her better judgment gave in and took what he had willingly offered her.

Rogue had told me sometime later that she knew when she had given herself and her virginity to Logan that it was Jean he had on his mind but she thought maybe if she could finally show him she what held for him in her heart was truly more than a crush that somehow she could help him let go of the fantasy he had of him and Jean living having a happily ever after. Alas all she managed to show him was that she was willing and waiting for him whenever and however he wanted. And from what she has told me of their short time together she more than anyone had come to know the real Wolverine in Logan.

Although believe it or not that wasn't even the worst of it; No, that night happened almost two months after their affair had started when Ororo came home with two faces that brought smile and laughter to the whole mansion, Xavier and Scott. Which was quite a shock to everyone, not that is wasn't a good one, it mostly was, but it was also the end of Rogue and Logan.

You see as soon as the Professor had explained that it was Jean had been the one who saved both him and Scott from the fate the Phoenix had planned for them and that somehow Jeans essence and being still existed it didn't take Logan more than and hour to pack his things and go in search for a way to bring Jean back. It was that moment that truly destroyed Rogue along with any and all hope of ever being loved by Logan, or anyone else I think for that matter. And even though she was still the sweet, loving person she had always been something in her had changed, you could see if you looked into her big brown eyes and the way they always seemed to carry a deep sadness in them after that.

Any how here we were three years later when the Professor called all of us in to his office to discuss a very important mission. He had given us all the same warm smile he always did when we entered before he informed us of the dangerous situation we were about to enter. Yet this time as we all sat around his desk in various chairs listening to him explain what he and Hank had discover about a band of a couple of hundred rebellious military soldiers that had gotten their hands on some very dangerous weapons and were forming a revolt against the government and it's acceptances of mutants as just another part of the human race, we knew something was defiantly different about this mission than most of the others we had ever embarked on.

Then as he started revealing to us what actions he was hoping to take to solve the problem. He wanted to infiltrate the compound in which the soldiers had been successful in making a home for them, their troops, and their followers from the inside with two of our own. That way we not only knew the place inside and out but we would be able to be aware of what they were up to and when they were mostly likely to strike as well as where.

The room was in complete and dead silence as it became apparent that Rogue and Scott where the only ones that would be able to play the parts. Since they had both lost their powers due to the cure, it was more than obvious that they would be the easiest to for our rivals to trust, and the least likely to be found out. With a silent nod from both Rogue and Scott they let the Professor know that they understood what he was asking them and was willing to do any job he asked. With that done they then left the room quietly in opposite directions to prepare themselves for their mission to come.

Ro and Hank had followed Scott, and we had trailed after Rogue. And standing here watching her as the first of her silent tears began to fall I knew that the two of them Rogue and Scott had a future before them that only seemed to hold more pain.

"Well here goes nothing." Kitty said finally pulling away from her husband and making her way to her best friend.

Walking up behind her she wrapped her arms around her in a loving embrace before putting her chin on her shoulder and saying "So what's it going to be this time, a girls night out where you, Ro, Jubs and I get completely and one hundred percent plastered in celebration of your last night as a free women, or just a night of you, me and some good old fashion girl talk while I help you pack?" Kitty said playfully to her as she always did in an attempt to get Rogue to smile, which failed badly. "Sweetie you know if you don't want to do this the Profess…."

"It's fine…. I'm… fine." Rogue stated cutting off Kitty in mid sentence unconvincingly as she brushed a few stray tears away.

"Yeah right… say whatever happened to that whole not lying to yourself thing you were trying back when you dumped my husband." Kitty said with a playful smirk on her face as she saw the curve of a smile on her best friend's lips at the smart ass comment.

"Bicth." Was all Rogue replied with a sad smile on her face as she turned and hugged her best friend. If someone had told her five years ago that her boyfriend Bobby would be married to Kitty Pride and that both Kitty and Bobby would be her best friends on top of that she would have fallen on the floor laughing but right now was one of those moments where she couldn't be more grateful to have them both in her life. She loved them so much and would give her life for either of them. And as if listening to her cry about Logan and the lost of her one true love wasn't enough, she was sure that they both would willing to put their life on the line for her as well.

"Yes well I may be a bitch but I am also your best friend and as such I come with certain privileges. One being the fact that am an allowed at any time to give my opinion on any situation you have gotten yourself into." Kitty enlighten her as she took a seat beside her at the window.

"As if not being my best friend would stop you from stating your opinion." Rogue teased with a smile on her face which resulted in Kitty sticking her tongue out at her before she continued.

"Regardless of the fact that you are being mean to me right now I have decided to help you out with your problem anyways. And I must say aside from the fact that it is pretty much an arranged marriage, and will probably only be in name, Scott is a really good catch. I mean come on even you got to admit the man is hot."

Rogue smiled as a flash of the man in question went though her mind. "Ok… it's true, the man is good looking. And even I have caught myself checking him out on more than one occasion. BUT… he is also head over heels in love with Jean to this very day. And we all know how my relationships fair when I'm with a man who's in love with Jean Grey."

"I should have known that this had something to do with Logan. Every time you cry it always seems to come back to him in one way or another. But it's not like you and Scott are going to be in this because you love each other, it's for a mission. And like I was trying to say earlier you don't have to do it. The Professor would completely understand if you weren't willing to spend the next two to five years of your life married to someone for the good of human and mutant harmony. We can always find another way Rogue." Kitty said on a serious note all kidding aside now.

"No, I want… I do want to do this mission. I don't have a problem with acting as or being Scott's wife for however long this takes. I mean like you said there aren't any feelings attached for either of us so actually I think that's another good reason for us to be the ones to go, it will be all business and no confusion. It's just… I just start thinking about how long we are going to be gone, with only limited contact. I'm going miss everybody… I'm going to miss being here at home… and most of all I going to miss my best friend." Rogue confessed with a tears again forming in her eyes.

"I know… I'm going to miss you too. I am probably going to miss you more than you miss me. But now that this is all settled and we know you are going to be getting married in the morning you have two options. One we can get rip roaring drunk and then pack tomorrow before you and your husband… man that's weird… anyways as I was saying before you two leave or we can go ahead and get you packed tonight that way everything's ready tomorrow. And might I add on a personal note I hope you choose the first of the two options simply because you're damn funny when you're drunk."

"Yeah, ok… look whose talking miss I think my feet are missing." Rogue giggled out as she stood up and started making her way out of the library all the while remembering the night they had drank so much that Kitty had to crawl up the stairs due to the fact she couldn't feel her feet.

"You know what I don't want to hear it, you try having my mutation and being three sheets to the wind and then we'll see how well you can walk." Kitty defended as she followed close beside Rogue.

**** In The Room Of Scott Summers ****

"Scott, honey… are you…" Ororo stated as she leaned herself against his door frame waiting for him to invite her in only to be cut short by his response.

"I'm fine Ro. Please there is no need to waste your time worrying about me." Scott said as he ran his fingers though his hair before went to the closet and started pulling out clothes for him to work out in. As he turned throwing his outfit on the bed he caught a glimpse of himself in the mirror, and paused for a moment looking himself over.

Still after three years he had not gotten used to used to seeing in color or not having to wear his glasses. When he had come awake after the incident at Alkali Lake with Jean he found himself at a hospital in northern New York and without his mutation. In the next few days he had learned from a nurse and Doctor Mora, a friend of the Professors, that the Professor himself was a patient in the very same hospital and that he as well as the Professor had been in some type of coma for almost five weeks. They tried to explain to him that due to complications beyond their control, the sweet doctor had to administer the cure to Scott in order to save his life or at least what little was left of it at the time.

"Well if you decided you need to talk someone, you know where to find me." Ororo said with a sigh as she turned and walked down the hall to her furry husband. She knew that look on his face and as usual he wasn't going to open up to her about what was going on inside and although she deeply wished and prayed he would she knew better than to push him into it.

Scott slumped down into the chair across from the bed as his friend walk away, he hated this. He hated being the cause of her to worry and of her pain for not being able to be there for him. But it just wasn't something any amount of talking would fix as far as he was concerned. He had just agreed no more than an hour ago to be married, to leave home on an extended mission, and it was all happening tomorrow.

In all honesty he had been somewhat shocked when Rogue had agreed as well. He never though she would be willing to marry any one but her precious Logan. Logan… once again he was going to have to compete with the almighty Wolverine, except this time the woman they would be fighting over would actually be his wife. True there were no feeling between him and Rogue, and they would be married basically for the mission and their cover, but still if she was going to be his wife regardless of the fact that it was for undercover purposes he would expect her to be loyal and faithful to him just as he would to her. Not to mention the fact that they will be closely watched by the people that they will be living with inside of the compound for the next two to five years, neither of them could risk being found out by going out with someone else while they were suppose to be the happily married couple they were going to be posing as.

Which meant when Logan finally figures out that it isn't possible to bring Jean back and came back to claim his Rogue, he would get the shock of his life when he finds out Rogue is not only taken but married to one person he couldn't stand the most, the one and only boy wonder himself, Scott. The thought of that actually put a smile on Scotts face for a moment, before the thought of what if Logan was actually able to bring Jean back seeped its way into his mind. Who would be smiling then? He stood and pushed the thought from his head, Jean was gone for real this time. There was no coming back he said to himself as he picked up his workout clothes once again and made his way to the gym.


	2. Night Time Realizations

**Chapter Two – Night Time Realizations**

It was one in the morning now and although Rogue had chosen to pack, get ready for the mission and rested for her vows later this morning she found herself still awake and starring out of her window when she spotted him, her husband to be. It was almost a year ago that Rogue had come to notice Scott's nightly routine of sitting at the fountain in the garden, and that he was usually there from midnight to around two in the morning. Over the past few years Ororo, Professor X, and Hank had done there best to be there for him. And although Scott on the outside seemed to be the same old Scott that he had been before all if this had started and he'd lost Jean, it was this time at night, almost every night that Rogue saw different, she saw the side of Mr. Summers that he wanted no one else the see. The part of him that was screaming inside and barley holding on to whatever life he had left.

She had debated more than a few times over the past year if she should go down and check on him, just to make sure he was ok, but what was the point when she knew that he wasn't. He had lost the love of his life, his soul mate and she knew what that felt like, she knew there was nothing she could say or do would be of comfort to him. Besides that fact she really barley even knew him, and if his friends couldn't help him with his grief, how could she?

But now, things were different, it was her future husband sitting out there, and after watching him all these nights over the past year she knew that she had to at least try.

Scott was a good man, even though the Logan in her sometimes told her otherwise, and Scott didn't deserve to suffer like this, at least not alone. So if anything she could at least sit beside him, just to let him know that he wasn't by himself, that someone was there with him in the darkness.

With that she slipped on her white slippers, pulled on her white silk robe before she headed out to the garden. It was a full moon so the garden was beautifully lit, and she was able to find her way to the fountain in no time at all. She turned the corner and saw him with his back to her and she just watched him awhile as he sat there with his head in his hands.

Still unsure of what to say or if she should say any thing at all she slowly walked over to the bench he was seated on and took the spot beside him. She laid a hand on his back and started rubbing lightly as she decided that if he wanted to talk he would, until then she would just let her presents tell him she was there when he was ready.

When he felt the soft hand touch his back Scott jumped a little in surprise before looking up to see it was Rogue sitting beside him, the woman he was suppose to be marrying in only a few hours, a woman he really knew nothing about. He wasn't sure why she there but he knew it more than likely had something to do with their up coming marriage and mission.

Or maybe she was going to tell him that everything was going to be alright, that time would ease the pain, and then give him the same bullshit lines that everyone else had since he had lost Jean. But they were all wrong, time wasn't healing the pain, in fact it seemed to be only making it worse.

It was killing him, her scent had faded from her pillow, the sound of her voice was starting to slip away, and the memories they shared were no longer filling his dreams, only to be replace by the nightmare of reliving her watery death, and then her trying to end his life.

He felt was losing her more and more everyday and now there was hardly anything of her left and it was making it harder for him to breath. He waited for the woman beside him to start speaking her words of encouragement, and after a good ten minutes had gone by and still Rogue had said nothing, Scott was relived, yet curious, so he had to ask. "So I don't mean to be rude or any thing but what is it you want Rogue?" He questioned her without even looking her way.

"Truth is, I saw you from my window and I've actually seen you a few times over the past year. I know that your in pain, so I don't need an answer on how your feeling. Trust me I know what the kind of pain your feeling is like and who am I to tell you that it's going to get better, I can't see the future, and my pain hasn't really lessened any so why tell you something that I don't know is true. But I just thought maybe since tomorrow we'll be… I don't know I guess I just thought that if we could learn to suffer together then maybe, just maybe neither of us would feel so alone." Marie confessed in her soft southern accent, pulling her hand from Scott's back and into her lap. She looked at him with her face looking as heartbroken and worn as his, if there was one thing she could give this man it was the truth and there was this saying her mama had told to her that'd always stayed with her when it came to being honest, it was "The truth can heal just as much as it can hurt but it never causes as much destruction as a lie."

Scott turned his head to look at the woman who was supposed to be only a girl. Sure she was twenty three, still she was young, but those were the most mature words he had heard from anyone in the past three years since all of this craziness had began.

He was speechless, he didn't know how to respond to such an honest answer after having to put on a fake smile and assure everyone he was ok for so long. He was in pain and she saw it, in fact she had flat out called him on it. Not only that but she had also come out and told him that she wasn't sure it was going to get better or even go away. And it was there in that moment that Scott felt for the first time since Jean's death that he wasn't totally alone.

"Look Scott I know that everyone's pain is different, and it isn't up to me or anyone else, wither you are able to get over losing Jean and what she tried to do to you. But it is up to me if I want to be here for you while you go through it and it won't do you or me any good if either of us to have to lie about the way we really feel, like you do with your friends. Am I worried about you? Sure, but you don't have to lie to me to make me feel better. I mean we're going to be married in a few hours and I will be your wife and I know that all guys think they have to lie when it comes to their past and how they feel about it. But I don't expect you to and hope you don't. And maybe after all of this is said and done we'll be able to truly call one another friends" Rogue didn't know where all of the words had come from. She knew she was a little nervous about talking to Scott but she couldn't believe she had just rambled on like some mindless twit. With that thought in mind and now feeling a little embarrassed she started to stand, when she felt his hand on her arm pulling her back into her seat. She took her seat next to him once again and reverted back to her earlier plan to stay silent until he wanted to talk.

Sitting there a moment in complete silence with the young woman named Rogue beside him, he thought about what she had just said. After all this time he had prayed and wished for someone to understand, his prayer had finally come true. And although Rogue was the last person at the mansion he would have expected to get what kind of pain he was in, there she was looking at him with sadness in her eyes that seemed to mirror his own. And he must admit it was nice to have her there beside him. Especially knowing that she wasn't going to ask him stupid questions or try to make him feel better by saying things that weren't true. "Thank You." He said not knowing what else to say, since her gesture had meant more to him than he could put into words.

Rogue nodded her head in acceptance of his appreciation and they sat there in silence for another ten minutes or so before Scott surprised her by talking.

"You know it was here that we shared our first kiss." Scott had stated remembering the way Jean had shyly blushed when she had looked at him for days after it had happened.

"She was rambling on about something that had to do with a documentary she had watched about sharks or something and I really don't know if I did it more to shut her up or because I couldn't wait any longer to fill what her lips felt like against mine. But it was one of the few impulsive things I have ever done in my life, one of the best too. I just grabbed her, pulled her to me, and laid one on her." Scott couldn't help but smile at the memories of Jeans reaction, she had kissed him but after it had happened she had just picked up where she had left off in her rambling.

"I wish I had thought of doing something like that when she started rambling one of her lectures in our biology class. Although I'm sure she wouldn't have liked me kissing her as much as she did you." Rogue said playfully, getting another smile from him. It was really nice to see him smile, not one of those fake smile that he gave the others but a real smile.

"Actually I think at that point in my life anyone would prefer you kissing them rather than me… you know with me it was with the death and horror. I can honestly say I used to bring a whole new meaning to the words sucking face." She let out a giggle enjoying being able to joke with him about her past. She wanted to keep his sprits up as much as possible and if helping him meant she had to make a few cured jokes so be it. With all the Logan in her head it certainly wasn't that hard to do.

"I am pretty sure there are quite a few people who would disagree with that, including myself. I would much rather have near death experience with a beautiful woman than have another guy kiss me." Scott joked back with her, turning his head to meet another one of her smiles with his own. Looking at her, she reminded him somewhat of Jean. They both had a smile that could brighten up am entire room, and their laughter was like music. Scott suddenly realized why Logan had vowed to protect her and even put his life on the line more than once to save this lovely young woman sitting next to him. She was remarkable.

"Well, the one thing about Jean that I had always admired was her grace. She always knew what to say, and when it needed to be said. If it wasn't for her I don't think I ever would have given Bobby a chance or anyone else for that matter." She paused a moment and turned her head to look Scott in the eyes again.

"She told something I'll never forget and will always be grateful for. She said to have a life, you have to live it. You know, it's funny how a few little words can mean so much. But they did, they still do. And even though things didn't work out for Bobby and me, I still wouldn't trade anything for the memories we had together… Memories are kind of funny that way… they'll either bless you or haunt you. You just have to choose which one it will be." For the first time in a long time Rogue saw a clam come over Scott's faces, something that hadn't been there since Jean had first died.

He needed this to be able to talk about her, and with everyone else trying so hard to get over there own grief of Jean passing any time her name was mentioned it seemed the whole mansion became silent, as if it was forbidden to talk about her, especially around Scott.

"You know Rogue, you have that same kind of grace." He stated as he brushed back a strand of platinum hair out of her face. Looking away from her, he turned his head up to look at the stars and took a deep breath before looking back at the girl he would now and forever think of as his savior. " I just wish I could stop missing her, God I miss her so much."

"You will always miss her, and that's ok. There is nothing wrong with you wanting her to be here Scott. She was apart of your heart and life so long that's never going to change. But… it is ok to be happy too. Just because you smile, laugh, joke, maybe even fall in love again one day, that doesn't mean that you don't miss her any less than you do now. It just means that you understand that's how she would want you to miss her. She would want you to be happy, she always wanted everyone to be happy, it was kind of apart of her character, who she was, why she did what she did, what she fought for." Rogue stood and held her hand out to him letting him know it was about time to go inside, he accepted and she helped pull him into a stand. Then she decided to add

"Scott, I not saying that… that you have to happy to honor her or anything I just…." She was cut off as he held up a finger and placed it on her lips to silence her.

"Your right, I know she would want me happy, and for her I will try. But don't except me to be a bed of roses anytime soon." He said jokingly. Her words had hit with a force. She was right, he had known he would always miss Jean, and that she would always be apart of him. But it was time to at least try and start living the life he had been given back.

"Hate to break to you mister but you were never exactly a bed of roses to begin with." She stated with a smile as they started walking back up to the house together.

"Spoken like a true smartass." Scott said with laughter in his voice.

"Yes, well I have many hidden talents. You'll get used to them." She replied with a smirk speared across her face.

"Now I'm not so sure I want to marry you." He said as he pulled open the door and held it for her as she walked in.

"Just try and think of it as an adventure." She replied as she turned back to watch him shut and then lock the back kitchen door.

"An adventure huh, yeah that's not the word that came to my mind." He said now laughing lightly all the while thinking to himself maybe this whole marriage thing to Rogue wouldn't be half bad after all.


	3. Holy Matrimony

**Chapter Three – Holy Matrimony**

This was it Scott thought to himself, this morning at the first sign of dawn he had driven to the local spot Hank and Xavier had directed him to with the government paper Hank had made for him stating he was a former Marine in hand and signed papers to join with the Special Forces Against Mutants Department of the Marines or SFMD which was the name the group that the Professor and Hank had been investigating had been calling themselves. And now with in the next few minutes Rogue would be walking through the Professor's office doors and then Nightcrawler the schools resident priest would join the two of them in holy matrimony, there was no turning back now.

Scott took a moment to look around the room at the hand full of people who seemed to be just as nerves about all of this as he was. There was Professor Xavier, Nightcrawler, Ororo, Hank, Colusess, Jubilee, Bobby, and of course Rogue's best friend Kitty. They were all scattered about the office waiting along with Scott for his bride to make her entrance. Scott was honestly glad that only the people in this room knew that he and Rogue's bond in marriage would be authentic and lawfully justified. The rest of the occupants of the mansion had simply been told that the two of them were going on am important mission in which they were just posing as husband and wife.

Wife, he was going to have Rogue as his wife, which to be quite honest was more than a little strange. Scott never would have thought that anyone other than Jean would have been bestowed with that particular title. Yet ironically here he was waiting to marry the last women on earth he would have ever considered to fill the position of his wife. Not that Rogue wasn't a wonderful attractive women, hell if Rogue was to be described as any one thing it would be her beauty, and as far as her personal character was concerned Scott has put to rest any doubts about her in that department earlier that morning when she had reveled to him just how loving and caring she could truly be. The only reason Scott or any other man at the mansion for that matter would have never considered Rogue as a prospect for their future wife was due mostly to the fact that Rogue had always worn her heart for all to see and anyone who looked her way could clearly see that her heart had Logan's name burned permanently into it. Just the way Scott's own heart had always only had one person's name imprinted on his… Jean.

As Scott thoughts started to turn to Jean the Professor interrupted them informing Scott telepathically that Rogue wanted to speak with him in private for a moment out in the hall way. Scott made his way out of the office and when he turned his vision to the stairway after closing the door which caused his jaw to almost hit the floor at the sight of her. She had chosen to actually dress like a bride today, sure it wasn't an actual wedding dress but she would have put any other bride to shame none the less. It was a simple cream colored silk cocktail dress came down around her ankles, with a fairly low curved neck line and a plunging back that hung down just above her derriere. She had decided to pull her hair up in a tussled look with a few platinum stands lose framing her face. For jewelry she had selected silver necklace with a small cross hanging from it and a set of small diamond stud earring to match. Scott look himself over and suddenly wanted to go change he had only put on a black with thin gray pen striped button up shirt untucked with the nicest blue jeans he had, he had never thought that Rogue might actually want to be dressed for the occasion seeing as how it was only for documentation and show.

Rogue watched him look his self over and knew what he was thinking. "Don't worry you look great. I would much rather have you in this than some boring suite." She stated honestly as she took the sight of him in. And just as she had said he looked good, if true be told she thought he looked even more handsome in casual dress than he did in formal so she had no problem with what he was wearing in fact she couldn't have picked any thing better. "So… I just wanted to ask you… before we went through with all of this… are you really ok with it, because if you would rather not do this I am sure the Professor can find…"

"Rogue… Rogue… Stop. Now listen to me, I'm sure. I know that we are both very level headed people and that we can handle this mission. But if you're having second thoughts… then we can call this whole thing off. Just don't do it because you are trying to save me, I'll let you know if I need saving. And believe it or not I'm actually pretty good at fighting my own battles." Scott said to her with a firm steady voice to ensure the fact that she knew he was fine with the up coming mission they had both agreed to.

"Marie." She confessed to him as she looked down stirring at her own to hands as if she had never seen them before.

"What?" Scott asked confused, she had completely lost him. Who Marie was and what she had to do with their pending nuptials was completely beyond him.

"Marie" She said lifting her eyes to a confused Scott. "Marie is my real name… since I'm and going to be your wife and all I figured you should at least know what to call me. And beside the name Rogue Summers just doesn't quite have that ring to it." She joked with a small smile on her face.

Marie… Scott never would have guessed that she had been hiding her true name. He along with all of the mansion had just thought that Rogue was her given name. Yet now looking at her, how soft and fragile she seemed to be there was no other name in the world that would fit her other than Marie. He didn't know what it was exactly but standing there with his eyes fixed on her, after she had told him something she had been holding so dearly to her self, his vision of her changed in his mind. When she had given him her true name it was as if she was giving him a little piece of herself, so in a tiny way she truly became his. He felt as if he had a little bit of a right to actually marry this beautiful creature now, and call her his wife.

"Well then…. Shall we get in there and make you Mrs. Marie Summers." He asked extending him arm for her to take, which she took with the most gentlest of touches, as she let him led her into the room, and their new lives together.

After the vows were over everything seemed to happen in a blur, first they posed for Kitty as she took a few pictures of them together to put up around their new home and then fifteen minutes later when all of their good byes were said and done they had their things all packed in the SUV the Professor had given them and they were on the way to Marine Barracks in Washington, DC were Scott had been told to report to after signing with the SFMD. When he got there he was report to one Coronal Eddie Garrard who at which point would decide his rank, job and placement. Then the Coronal would give him his induction paper and send them both to the compound they would be calling their new home.

"Established in 1801, Marine Barracks, Washington, D.C., is the "Oldest Post of the Corps" and has been the residence of every Commandant of the Marine Corps since 1806. The selection of the site for the barracks was a matter of personal interest to President Thomas Jefferson, who rode through Washington with Lieutenant Colonel Commandant Burrows in search of a suitable location. The site now occupied was approved since it lay near the Navy Yard and within easy marching distance of the Capitol….. Scott are you even listening to me?" Marie asked as she paused in reading the history information of the place they could be living for the next two to five years together.

"Yeah, yeah I was just thinking that the Marine Barracks is just to public of a place for them to be carrying out the type of plan that the Professor and Hank fear they are making against the very government they are working for. We probable are just wasting out time in studying the place. They more than likely have established a place not to far from there like and old airstrip or something. I mean, there is such a thing as hiding in plain sight, but there is also just plain stupid. Maybe there is something in my papers. Dose it say anything about what we can expect our living conditions to be like in those?" He asked hoping that she could find something, anything as to give them a clue to what exactly they were going to be getting themselves into.

"Lets see…" Marie thought out loud fumbling through the paper until she found the ones she was looking for and started skimming through them. His recruiting officer gave them to him, earlier that morning before they were married and then with the wedding and everything else going on neither they nor any one else on the X-team was given the chance to look them over.

"Here we go; I think I may have found something. Although it is really vague, all it basically says are things we already know. That we have agreed to live in constant visual supervision which like your recruiter said means that there will be cameras stationed all over the compound including inside our home, that you are not allowed to bring absolutely anyone on the base other than your wife, and that we are only allowed off the compound with approved and signed order from your commanding officer."

"Well I guess we are just going to have to play it out by ear." Scott said more to himself than her.

"Scott are you sure we are going to be able to do this?" Marie asked and she sat the papers down and ran an uneasy hand through her hair.

"It's a little late to be asking that question now when we are about twenty minutes away from the Marine Barracks." Scott said jokily with her trying to lighten her mood seeing how worried she truly looked.

"I'm not joking here, and I don't mean the mission, well I guess it is apart of the mission since they have to believe… but then again it's really not since it has nothing to do with…" Marie began rambling as she started flipping through the papers with nerves hands.

"Marie the point please." Scott more or less order stopping her in mid ramble as he pulled the SUV over in a gas station parking lot so that he could hopefully settle what was on her mind before they arrived at the Barracks.

"We are going to have to sleep in the same bed, touch, kiss, you know actually act like a married couple even when were alone, I mean it pretty much states as much in your papers that they will always be watching. It's right here in black in white carmrea will and are madatory through out every soldiers home." Marie spat out as she turned in her seat so that she could face Scott head on with the problem that she really hadn't thought about until now.

"And it would be pretty obvious that something was strange about us if we for instance don't sleep in the same bed, hold hands, or… you know… fool around… and…..and… since our marriage papers state that we are in fact a couple of newly weds, you know there are going to be certain things that newly weds do that we…. You and I… Uhh….."

Scott was froze were he sat, he couldn't for the life of him think of any thing to say. In fact the whole concept of words had been destroyed the moment Marie had said bed, touch, and kiss one after the other. Now all he could think about was how this was so not going to be a problem from his end. Sure he was still and would probably always be in love with Jean, but he was also a living man with a pulse, one who hadn't had sex in almost five years. Add all of that to the fact that Marie was the most beautiful women he had ever encountered aside from Jean, oh on there was no way sharing touches, kiss, and particularly a bed with this women was going to be anything but one of the best parts of this endeavor.

"I mean, god I'm just going to say it. Sex, how are we going to… you know? Are we just going to roll around under the sheet and pretend to do it? Or are we actually going to…?" Marie couldn't believe the last words she had said after they had fallen out of her mouth. But there was no way she could take them back and to be honest she actually wanted to know his answer.

Scott swallowed hard as a few images flashed through his head upon hearing her question, but he was quite sure she wouldn't want to hear that there was no way he could ever pretend to have sex especially with a woman that looked like her.

"Look I really bout they are going to be looking at us and what we do that closely, the camera's are there for security not invasion of privacy but if things come to the point we need… or are going to… have…Umm… if we need to address to situation of being together then we can deal with it then, ok?" He said trying to lay her fears to rest and clam he raging hormones at the same time, the thought of getting to touch that body of hers was just too much and he had to stop thinking about it.

"Yeah, sounds great… we'll deal with it later… ok." Marie agreed somewhat satisfied with his answer, yet in the back of her mind she was a little disappointed; although she wasn't sure quite why.

"Ok." Scott sighed as he started the truck back up and pulled back onto the road.


	4. Nice To Meet You

**Chapter Four – Nice To Meet You**

After Scott had talked with Coronal Eddie Garrard, and they both sat with him in a surprise couple interview that had actually gone rather well, he had told them they would be shipped out to the compound immediately. So after all of their paperwork was checked and they finally met the Coronals approval they were instructed to follow him in their SUV to a secure location, which they did.

Upon pulling up to an old navy base that had a cargo plane ready and waiting, Scott patted a nervous Marie on the knee and gave her a wink with a smile as he got out of the truck and talk to Coronal Garrard who handed Scott the paperwork that held all the information as to when and who Scott was to report to when the got to the compound. Once they were loaded into the plane SUV and all they took off for what would only end up being about a twenty minute flight before they landed at the compound which was literally in the middle of no where.

No outside roads, no train tracks, the only way in to or out was by the airstrip located in the back of the compound. And from what Scott was able to calculate by the flight he was sure that they were in Maryland somewhere between the Distract of Columbia and Pennsylvania. Once they had landed they were given a tour of the compound which consisted of a grocery store, a couple of clothing stores, a few restaurants, a movie theater, a bar, and of course housing for all the soldiers that were there.

**Three Weeks Later**

Scott looked at the paperwork he had taken home yet his mind was on another subject matter, Marie. They had been here a little over three weeks now, their first night there had been spent in silence but the next day Marie had made him play game of truth, which he later in the evening joked with her about leaving out the benefits of the dares.

For an hour they had quizzed each other on things they wanted to know. Things like favorite colors, foods, and music were reviled and after that they no longer sat in silence when ever they were in one another's company. At first all they talked about was the mission and things related to it, and then all they seem talk about was Jean. How Scott had fallen in love with her at first sight, their first date, how Marie didn't want to like Jean at first because of her crush on Logan, and how Jean ending up being like the big sister she'd never had.

At other times their conversations would occasionally carry over to the time she and Wolverine had spent together although it wasn't very often and she never really said too much about it. It was completely obvious to Scott that Marie had more than a just strange relationship with Logan, even though when she talked about her feelings for him and their time together all she ever referred to it was an affair.

However Scott could see it in her eyes whenever Logan's name was spoken that the pain there was too great for it to have just been a just a casual thing, she had loved him and he had hurt her. But he never pushed her on the subject of Logan, mainly because he didn't want to hear about her being with the man, but also because he knew Logan had hurt her too much for her to just talk about it.

Scott's thoughts faded away quickly when the sound of Maries heels clicking against the steel stairs of their new home caught his attention. He turned his head to look at her coming down the stairs, and just like every other time he had seen the beauty dress up for one occasion or another he was amazed at what he saw. She looked good, she looked too damn good, especially to be walking around in a compound full of single, young, horny men. Even he himself the cool, calm and collected leader was getting excited by just looking at her.

He couldn't take his eyes off of her she was wearing a too tight small white tank top with a very short blue jean pleated skirt that barely covered her ass. This was the most skin he had ever seen her show, even since she had taken "The Cure". Not the he was complaining he had no problem what so ever looking at her flawless procaine skin, tight body, and her very endowed chest.

Needless to say without even a word Marie had captured his full attention, in more ways than one, which had been happening more and more often as of late. Scott ran a hand through his hair, he had to stop doing this, thinking about doing things like hiking up that pathetic excuse for a skirt of hers, lifting her up against their living room wall and taking her then and there. Sure they were married but this was Marie and their marriage was only in name shake and for show to get her into the compound in hopes she could maybe get some information out of the other wives.

No, he had to simply stop lusting after this woman he had come to think of as a friend. Finally with that thought in mind he decided to find out what exactly her reason was to looking so damn delectable to begin with. "You do remember that you married right? Yeah hi, your husband here speaking, dates aren't allowed my dear." He stated playfully.

"Well then it's a good thing I'm going out with my husband tonight and not one of my boyfriends." She replied with a smile and laughter in her eyes. She loved being able to joke around with Scott this way, she loved how he knew just when she was being serious and when she was just screwing around with him. Not only that but that fact the he was comfortable enough with her to act the same way and loosen up a bit made it all that much better.

"Excuse me, what did you say because I don't think I heard you clearly." He pretended not to understand since they had already had this conversation earlier and he thought he had won. He had told Marie there was no way they were going out, that they need to stay in and study the latest papers he had gotten a hold of, and she had simply nodded and went up stairs.

"We… are … going… out." She said slower this time as she waved her between the two of them first pointing at him and then herself.

"No… we … are… not." Scott rebutted copying her same slow speech and finger movement.

"Fine." She said putting her hands on each arm of the chair he was sitting in, bending over slowly and knowingly giving him a good cleavage shot as she come down to look at him face to face. "I'll go alone then, have fun at home and don't wait up because I will be getting home late." With a quick peck of her lips to his forehead she stood and tried to walk away only to have Scott take a firm holds on her right wrist and tug her back.

"I don't think so." He stated as he rose from the chair to stand in front of her meeting her eye with his own. "There is no way in hell I'm letting you go out there, dressed like that, alone." When he finished the statement he almost wished he hadn't said it at all, with the way Marie was looking at him now smirk spread across her face they both knew she had won. With a sigh he let go of her hand and turned to go up stairs and get ready, "Give me ten minutes."

Pulling up the only nightlife at the compound, which was actually named "The Bar" Scott still couldn't believe he had let himself be suckered into coming. But it was too late now they were here so he may as well in enjoy the view of his wife and the wonderful little outfit she had on that had gotten him here in the first place. Walking into the packed place Scott was sure to keep a protective arm around Marie's waist. Already she was being looked and pointed at by some of the young drunk idiots of the male gender. But that problem aside Scott was glad the he had came with her. Hell how could he be any thing but happy when he was holding onto the hottest women in the room. And to be honest he had to admit the Marie had been right about them needed to get out of the house so the she could introduce herself to some of the other wives here in the base and with luck and time maybe get some vital information from them as well.

Once they were at the bar Marie ordered them a couple of beers and as they were being handed their drinks by the bartender, Scott recognized a couple of men who were assigned to the same troop he was making there way over to them.

"You're the newbie in our squad, Summers right?" the tall bald man asked as he extended his hand in a friendly greeting to both Scott and Marie, the shorter man beside him following him in suit.

Scott nodded his head yes as his swallowed a drink and them laid his arm holding his beer across Marie shoulders, "This is my wife, Marie." he replied as he and Marie shook both of the gentlemen's hands. Scott then pulled Marie more firmly to him, all the while trying to convince himself it was just to look more like a newly wedded couple and not just to feel that sweet little curve of her butt pressed against him. But he knew the real truth of it was more because he just loved the feel of the beauty in his arms. God, between Marie, his hormones, alcohol, and having to act like a newly marriage couple in front of all these people tonight was bound to get interesting to say the least.

"I'm Dom, this is Jace. Our wives over there were wondering if maybe the two of you would like to join us?" he said pointing behind him to another bar area wrapping around the dance floor, where two pretty women sat waving them to come over.

"We'd love to." Marie blurted out before Scott had a chance to decline them. And with the invite accepted the man who had introduced himself as Dom, (and looked like a clone of LL Cool J if you asked Marie) turned and headed back in the direction of his wife with his friend in toe leaving Marie and Scott to follow behind them.

Marie pulled herself away from Scott and turned around to look at him with her pleading eyes silently asking him to please be nice. At which he took in a deep breath of submission as he placed his arm back around her waist. Marie smiled at him and gave him a quick peck on his cheek as her way of saying thank you before she started walking with him over to their destination. As soon as they arrived at the table Marie knew that it was going to be easy to become fast friends with these people just by the way they had instantly cleared space for them to join there group.

"Scott, Marie this brat here is my wife Gabby and that annoyance over there is Jace's ball and chain Jenna." Dom stated as he, Jace, Marie, and Scott all took a seat.

"So you two just get in?" Gabby asked not waiting a second to strike up the getting to know you 101 conversation.

"Yeah, I guess you could say that, although we have been here almost a month now." Marie said as a waitress started placing shot's of some blue stuff in front of them.

"A month and you're just now getting out. Oh, you must have kids huh?" Jenna more stated than asked with a sad and depressed look on her face as if having a child was some kind of terminal disease.

"No, No my husband just so happens to be a tightass. You know, all work, no play." Marie said without any hesitation and no hint of humor in her voice, receiving four nervures looks from the people she had just met. Then almost simultaneously they all turned the heads in Scott's direction awaiting his reaction.

"You just going to let her slam you like that, bra?" Jace finally spoke reviling his Hawaiian accent.

"It's the truth… I'm a tightass, a real big one. And she's a bicth who's quite frankly bossier than my boot camp drill sergeant had ever been. Hell the only reason we are married at all is because the sex is great." Scott stated smoothly causing everyone to burst out in laughter, including Marie who nearly choked on the drink of beer she had just taken. And then there it was that smile that he would do just about anything to see. He loved watching her when she was happy like this smiling and laughing with no pain or sadness hiding in her eyes, god he was lucky to have her as his wife even if it all was just pretend.

At some point after six beers, four shots of sex something or another, and a crown and coke Scott had not only realized the he had a damn good buzz going but exactly just how grown up he sweet little innocent wife Marie truly was. He, Dom, and Jace had been left by each of their women a little over an hour ago for the dance floor. And now Scott was debating writher it was the alcohol in his system or the fact that he hadn't been with a women since Jean that were causing him to have his current thoughts about his other half. He was certain one or the other was to blame for the way his eye's had been glued to Marie and how she was moving on the dance floor for the last thirty minutes now.

He was simply entranced by her, the way she was running her fingers through her hair, down her neck, over the sides of her breast, then father still down to her… His mouth went dry and he finally forced himself to look away. Taking his sixth and last beer in his hand he finished it off in one gulp. He had to stop this, sure Marie had agreed to marry him but she had never said any thing about giving him the benefits that came with a normal marriage. In fact the only time the subject had come up was in the truck on their way to the Marine Barracks after their wedding and she hadn't exactly sounded like it was something she was looking forward to. In fact she had pretty much asked him how they were going to get around it. He raked his hand through his hair as he thought about how he had to go home with his little goddess and somehow share a bed with her tonight. God, help him to keep his hands and other body appendages to himself tonight, because at this point he wasn't sure if he was going to be able.

His eyes weren't on her anymore; she could feel the loss of them no longer roaming her body. Marie turned and started to make way off the dance floor to her husband who now was sitting with his back to her. Why he had suddenly lost interest in her she didn't know but that was exactly what she intended on finding out. She had enjoyed capturing his attention, knowing his was taking pleasure in watching the way she moved as she danced. And to be honest she loved it since she herself had taken quite a bit of pleasure in watching him as he striped down to his boxers every night before he got into bed with her. So it was nice to know that maybe just maybe she turned him on the way he had her almost every night for the past month now.

Scott was attractive that much Marie had always known but it wasn't until there first night here at the compound that she realized that he was more than that, he was drop dead gorgeous. She loved looking at him after he got out of the shower, all of the clean cut muscles glistening with water, his hair still wet and messy. Marie tongue ran over her lips as the image of him flashed in her mind as she finally came to stand behind him. God he smelled good like Kenneth Cole Black, she thought as she breathed the sent of him in pressing herself lightly against his back.

Why were they torturing their selves like this, he wanted her at least sexually she could see that by that way he had been watching her, and she sure as hell wanted him. Fuck it, no correction fuck him, he was her husband after all. Who said she couldn't fuck him, and it would be good for there image as a couple, and she wouldn't have to worry about hurting him, because his heart would always belong to Jean the same way hers would always belong to Logan. Her mind made up Marie put each of her hands on his shoulders as leaned into him more firmly while she bent her head and let her lips graze his earlobe. Marie couldn't help but smile when she heard him breath in a deep breath.

What the hell was she thinking, wait she's plastered she isn't thinking at all Scott thought as inhaled deeply. He turned around to face her and took her shoulders in his hands to put a little distance between them before he stated more for his own shake than for hers. "Marie your drunk."

"Yes, I am and your not exactly sober yourself darling." She said with her southern accent even thicker than usual as she leaned in to try and kiss him.

"Which is why you have to stop doing that." Scott said cupping her face with the palm of his hand keeping her lips from his. "You don't know what you're doing right now." He said still talking more to himself rather than the beautiful woman in front of him.

"What you don't want to kiss me?" Marie questioned him as she ran her hands from his shoulders down his chest and around to his ass as she tried to lean in for a second time. This time getting a quick on his lips before he gently pushed her back little, yet again.

"Trust me when I say that's not the problem." Scott managed to get out while reminding himself that even if she was his wife and offering, he couldn't take advantage of her this way.

"Then what is it?" Marie asked pushing closer for the third time now, and placing a few lingering kiss on the side of his neck and jaw line, pausing she placed her lips by his ear nipping his earlobe before she whisper seductively in his ear "Don't you want me Scott?".

"Marie… please…" Scott pleaded in almost a whisper himself, although he was quite sure wither he was begging her to stop or keep at it.

"Ok, ok… fine, I'll stop. But you have to make me a deal. Go out there on the floor with me for one song, and I promise I'll play nice." Marie said in defeat as she took a step back away from him.

"One song?" Scott repeated knowing that this was not a good idea. Yet still what other choices did he have? Take her home like this only to her continue roaming his body with her hand, kissing his neck and…. No, no way he could survive that.

"Yeah, one song a whole three to four minutes of dancing and I'll stop acting like a sluty drunk." She stated with a wicked little smile.

"Your not being a slut Marie, I just think you're too plastered to realize what it is your doing. " Scott confessed with a soft caring voice as he brushed a stand of platinum hair from her face.

"Maybe your right, "Marie started with her eyes locking with his before she continued "Maybe I don't know what I'm starting, but I have a good idea of where I would like it to end up." Taking his hand in hers she drug him into the middle of the dance floor. The song Say Goodbye by Chris Brown started filling the air as Marie took his hands and put them on her hips as she placed one her around his neck and the other around his lower back and pressed her body close to his as they started moving slowly together. She could him against her and she smiled as she leaned more firmly against him.

"Marie..." Scott warned her as she press against him and his rock erection, but of course she didn't stop there she now had her lips back on his neck and one of her hands was brushing the hair at the nape of his neck. She was intoxicating him, screw alcohol Marie made dizzier than it ever could, and he found himself tightening his hold on her hips and melding her body to his. "I shouldn't be doing this." He said as he finally let his own lips kiss the top of her head.

Pulling back just enough to look him in the eyes Marie ran her fingers up and down the side of his neck as she spoke. "Why not, I am your wife after all. And you know what that means don't you?" she paused for a moment letting her lips graze his before completing the rest of her statement. "It means you are allowed to touch me. When ever, where ever, and how ever you want." Finally she had her lips on his and he tasted even better than she could have ever dreamed.

Scott's hand slipped around her neck to draw her forward, while her arms circled his waist to hold on tight. And when their mouths met and melded, in a kiss that was so deeply erotic and highly sensual that they even had a few people watching. Then slowly their tongues entwined in a whirlwind of heat and longing, of desire and anticipate untied in passions sweet need. When his hands went to Marie's buttocks to lift her into his hardness, it was the mere sound of her moan of pleasure that broke the spell. "You realize your not playing fair." Scott whispered to her a little out of breath.

"Funny I wasn't aware that I was playing any games." Marie said as she ran her finger through his hair as she kissed him again.

"Let's go home." Scott was all said had left to say as her lips left his.


	5. Close and Personal

A/N: Thanks so much for all for the reviews and I want to give another big thank you to pyrena93 for revising the story for me. Yay, for pyrena93 the greatest beta ever.

**Chapter Five – Close And Personal**

The drive home was nothing more than a blur with her hands on his thigh, her lips leaving little kisses on his neck, jaw line, and every so often nipping his ear. He really couldn't help himself from grabbing her from the truck and carrying her inside and straight upstairs to their room. He wanted her and she wanted him, so he wasn't about to prolong what he had been fantasizing about for almost the past two weeks. They tore at each other clothing and were both undressed in record time. I wasn't until now, with Marie's gorgeous naked body quivering with need beneath him, that he paused and took a second to let it sink in what was about to happen.

Her eyes locked with his and he was frozen by the image of her; lost in her eyes and how much desire was shinning in them all for him. Then she said it, four little words in that sultry southern sexy drawl that had him fueled with passion, hunger, and need for her. "Scott please… don't stop." He raised one of his hands to cup the side of her face, then slowly lower his lips to hover a mere inch from hers.

"Scott…" was all she said before she closed the small space he had left between them. The next thing she knew, those muscular arms she had been longing for were wrapped around her, gathering her in to press close, closer until she could feel every inch of his hard frame along hers. Her body seemed to sigh into his, fitting so perfectly that it felt like home.

He was nibbling gently at her lips that tasted like her and alcohol when once again he reminded himself that he needed to come to his senses. With that thought in mind, he began to gather his wits to protest. "Marie…." he said pulling his lips away from hers, but she didn't stop kissing him. She just changed locations to his neck… his collarbone. "Marie… maybe we shouldn't…" he started but ended in a soft moan when she brought his earlobe into his month to suck in it lightly.

Finally pulling away from him, Marie looked in to his eyes which were filled with nothing but passion and desire, "Why… don't you want me… don't you…." Was all she got out before his lips came back to crush hers, with a kiss so full of fire that it should have set the room ablaze. Marie held on tight, needing to make sure he was really here. She wanted the closer contact and was reluctant to let go even long enough to allow him access to other areas of her body as he exploded her with his hands, lips, and tongue. She had tried to ignore the things Scott had made feel from the moment she woke up to see his face that first morning here at the compound, and she knew they still were nothing more than just friends on a mission that were taking comfort in one another, but trying to resist something as powerful as the attraction they shared was impossible.

She gasped when his mouth settled over one of her now very sensitive breasts. And he had her squirming before he was finished with the other. She wanted him right now, but he was taking his time with her, driving her crazy in his devotion to every inch of her. She felt his hand slide up over her breast to curve around her neck and bring her lips back to meet his, and then without warning he was inside her, deeply buried, and her whole body seemed to sigh in relieved welcome. Sure, she had had sex before but nothing compared to how soft, slow, and gentle Scott was doing it now. With Logan, even when he was being loving he was always rough, and something inside told her that this was probably the roughest Scott had ever been with a woman. Still she felt touched to her very core by the way her was holding and caressing. It was too long after he had entered her that was the starburst of white fire exploded in front of her eyes, sending out waves of tingling awareness from her center to every extremity as he sent her over the edge.

When Marie climaxed his name on her lips it triggered his own, feeling her throbbing against him, every shuddering spasm of pleasure was just too much. He couldn't hold back any longer. He smiled as he looked down at her face. She had left marks on his back and had maybe even drawn a little blood, but he was sure she didn't know it. Just as she didn't know that somehow, even though he wasn't quite sure how or why, Marie had just changed his world and how he would forever look at her. Scott slowly rolled off of her onto his back only to have her follow him and snuggled up next to him as sleep claimed her. With heavy eyes he smiled as he hugged her close and place a kiss on her forehead before letting slumber claim him as well.

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Waking up from a peaceful sleep with her lying in his arms was something Scott was starting to get accustomed to and, among other things, that he needed to add to his list of shit he shouldn't be doing. He slowly opened his eyes and looked over the vision of beauty curled up next to him. Her auburn and platinum streaked hair, her creamy porcelain skin, her full luscious lips, her tight body that curved in all the right places, and she was his now. He was no longer her husband only in name, and even though he knew he should regret it, especially with her being as drunk as she had been last night, he wouldn't trade a single touch they had shared for anything. Logan was an even bigger fool than Scott had originally thought him to be. To have had Marie, not just in body, but in heart and soul and just let her go with out even looking back so that he could search for a way to bring another man's fiancée back from the dead. The man had to be severely brain damaged. Oh well, Logan's stupidity was Scott gain, at least for the time being anyhow.

Pushing his thoughts aside for a moment Scott brushed a stray hair from Marie's cheek and let his finger slide down the side of her face to the curve of her neck as memories of him tasting the very flesh where his finger now laid replayed in his mind. They had exhausted each last night and Marie was still in the exact position she had been when she had fallen asleep, which he was probably taking too much pleasure in. It was at this moment, with Marie's naked body still pressed against him and her face nestled into his neck, that Scott felt the wave of guilt come over him for letting himself take advantage of her drunken state and getting lost in her.

Knowing he had to get ready for work Scott placed a light kiss on his wife's forehead before carefully removing himself from her grasp and sliding his legs off of the bed. He reached over and turned off the alarm that would be going off in twenty minute and then made his way to the bathroom and turned on the water for his shower. While the water was warming, Scott pulled a towel from under the sink and laid it on the counter as he looked at himself in the mirror. He breathed in deep as he ran his hands over his face and then through his hair. While he felt guilty about whole situation of taking advantage of Marie, he still had no regrets. And to be honest he wasn't sure if he ok with the fact that he carried absolutely no remorse. He knew should be telling her he was sorry, that it would never happen again, but looking over his shoulder at the beautiful women sleeping in their bed he knew he wouldn't be able to bring those words to his lips, much less out of his mouth. Scott simply wasn't sorry, and knowing that he had another two to five years of sleeping with her next to him in that bed, he knew the chances were it would happen again. He had enjoyed last night entirely too much for it not to. The knowledge he now had of how her body moved, felt, and tasted could not be erased.

Once again shoving his thoughts of Marie to the back of his mind, Scott went about his morning routine of getting ready for work. After showering, shaving, and taking care of his teeth he suited up in his BDU's and combat boots; all the while trying his best to keep quite so that he didn't wake Marie. Then when Scott had finally completed his morning ritual he walked over to the bedside where his wife was still laid sleeping and took a seat on the edge of their bed. Affectionately, he reached down and swept back a strand of platinum hair from her face. She truly was breath taking, and he prayed to God with every fiber of his being that last night wouldn't change anything between the two of them.

He liked that they were comfortable enough with one another to that they could laugh and even joke about who they were and things they had done and not get offended by it. He enjoyed knowing that they were able to talk about anything, no matter what the subject entailed, and how they seemed to understand one another without speaking a single word. She had become his dearest and closest friend in the past month they had lived here together.

Now, everything about their whole relationship that he cherished so much could all change due to the fact that they had slept together, giving Marie good reason to believe that they were more somehow. That wasn't the case for Scott; for him last night had been purely about sex, mind blowing incredible sex. It may have been the best he'd ever had in his life but it still didn't change the fact that his heart still remained with Jean. Sure he cared about Marie, he cared about her very deeply, and it wasn't that everything that had happened last night meant nothing to him. On the contrary, being with Marie meant a great deal to him. Scott sighed in defeat. How was he supposed to explain all of this to Marie if he couldn't even get it straight in his own head? For that matter, why was he even worried about it anyways. Just as he was still in love with Jean, Scott knew that Logan was the one who still held Marie's heart in his hands. The reason why was completely beyond him, but he knew Logan was the only man Marie wanted. What a pair they made, him in love with a woman who's been dead for five years and her in love with a someone who only gave a damn about her with her life was on the line.

Looking up at the clock he saw that it was time he left for work and after placing another quick kiss upon her forehead, he quietly slipped out of the house.

Marie stretched, a smile spreading across her face as a few images from the night before flooded her mind. Although what memories she did have of her and Scott's time together last night were a little hazy, she knew that they hadn't been a dream, since she could practically still feel his hands on her body. Hell she may not remember all of the details but one of the things she did recall was the fact that she had all but begged him; she had wanted him so badly.

Slowly she sat up and looked around the room; seeing their clothes still lying in the same places they had thrown them the night before brought yet another smile to her face. Then, with reluctance, she scooted out of the ever so comfortable bed and went to the bathroom to get cleaned up so she could start her day. As the water fell over her she let her mind wonder. She might not remember all of the details from their time together but what she did remember was amazing. He had paid so much attention to her, lavished her with kisses touches and caresses, something Logan had never done. She laid her forehead against the wall as it entered her mind with a force. Logan had never really been gentle with her in any aspect of their relationship. Despite what others and said and thought, she knew Logan may not have loved her the way she did him but he still thought of her as his. As amazing as last night was, and even if Logan had never been able to take her to the same sexual heights as Scott had, Logan was still the man she loved.

Damn it! She hated Logan for scarring her heart, both in love and literally, she thought to herself as she lifted her hand to the three inch scar place directly above her heart. But Scott would understand. He was probably the only other person in the world to know what it was like to love someone who could never love you back. That was one of the reasons she knew their time together was not a mistake. She knew they would not have to worry about things like emotions or breaking each others hearts; how could they when they were both in love with other people who had already broken them. No, there would be no breaking of hearts, no hurting one another's feelings, and no regrets. Only two friends helping one another to smile, laugh, and feel oh so good when they needed release.

"Hey you." Marie said as she walked out of the kitchen with two plates of chicken and fried rice/ She set them down on their dinning table and turned around to head back into the kitchen.

"Hey," Scott replied solemnly still a little tense about how things were going to be between them as he went to the table and took his usually seat.

"So, get any dirt today?" Marie asked in her usual cheery tone after setting down their drinks and taking her own seat at the table. Marie looked at him as he played with the food on his plate a little, looking like a kid who had just gotten a bad report card and didn't want to show his parents. "Scott… are you okay?"

"No," he sighed finally lifting his eyes to meet her own as he dropped his fork on his plate. "Look Marie about last night…."

"Wait, you're worried about last night?" Marie asked a little confused, what in the world could their night together have to do with him looking like someone had just died. "I was… that is if it was bad, it don't have to happen again. We can…"

"What the hell? I didn't say it was… bad. Why did you think it was…? I mean I was pretty sure you enjoyed as much as I did," Scott replied a little shocked only to be interrupted yet again by his wife.

"No, no, no, no, I never said I didn't enjoy it. In fact it was one of the best sexual experiences I have ever had. You were that one who started the whole about last night issue," Marie bluntly stated to him.

"Yeah but I wasn't going to say…" Scott started only to cut himself off and take a deep breath and then blew it out slowly. "I just wanted to make sure that things between us didn't change," he finally confessed, lowering his gaze back to his plate.

"Scott, hey, look at me," Marie softly demanded as she place one of her hands over his. "You're not going to hurt me ok. I know you still love Jean. I know what this is, what we are," she said with her voice full of tenderness, only to add with a smile, "All I'm asking for is a good fuck every once and awhile from my husband. Is that so wrong?" Which got the smile from him she wanted.

"No, I guess it's not," Scott said, finally relaxing as he let go of all of the fears he had about the two of them being intimate "Although I must ask what is it I will be getting in return?"

"I'm sure we can figure out something." Marie laughed.


	6. It's Been A Year Already

**Chapter Six – It's Been A Year Already?**

The night before their first anniversary Scott couldn't have been happier to be the husband of the beautiful young woman he had come to know everything about. Well, maybe not everything, but he knew more than anyone else knew about her, that much was for sure. He thanked God every time he saw her that she had walked down and sat beside him that fateful night at the fountain, the night before they were married, just one a year ago today.

That's right, tomorrow would be their first anniversary, he had been married to the sassy smartass for a whole year. Sure, the first few months together was a little bizarre; learning to sleep in the same bed together, touch each other with out being embarrassed, and actually become a married couple and do the things married couples do. Good God, he would never forget the first night they had slept together. Drunk or not, he had to admit it was still one of the best sexual experience he had ever had. Looking at her now as she danced with some of the people they had come to call friends here at the compound, he couldn't imagine his life without her. She had become his new purpose in life, to protect and keep her safe, like the one that walked out of her life had promised to do, and didn't.

Scott sighed as he turned to walk out of the double doors of the bar that was conveniently located inside of the compound to the patio that had been decorated with an abundance of lights and tables for the party people who just couldn't handle the smoke filled bar. He looked up at the sky as his thoughts returned to a time when Jean was still alive; he closed his eyes as he breathed the night air deep into his lung. A sadness came over his face then as his thoughts shifted to what Jean would be doing if she where still here, how she would have only danced with him to the slow songs, and the blush that she would give him when he would rub the small of her back letting her know it was time to make their way upstairs.

Then, as quickly as the sadness had come across his face a smile replaced it when he felt the soft touch of a hand on his shoulder, a touch so soft, gentle, and guarded that it could have only been Marie's. Her touch was always so different of everyone else's, maybe it was because of her years of having to be so careful where touching was concerned. Or maybe it was because her touch was a lot like her nature, so soft and loving to everyone she knew and cared for, and even gentle to those she didn't. Every person, both those she knew and those she didn't, seemed to be treated with the best of herself she had to give. Yet she was still too guarded to let anyone close to her in fear of being hurt or hurting them.

Scott turned his head to look down at the vision of beauty he had been able to call his own this past year, and tried to figure out what he had done to have a women like her. And although the answer was beyond him, he was more than appreciative to God for putting her in his life. She was wearing a black halter top made of silk with a pair of faded blue jeans that fit snugly to every curve of her luscious body. The silk top that she sported dipped between her breast to just above her navel and was letting to many of the other men in the bar enjoy some of her a couple of his wife's asset. If you asked his opinion, they were enjoying their view a little too much, whistling and hollering whenever she went by, but since he got to look too he didn't complain too much. Her hair was tumbling down around her shoulders in a messy sexy look and to complete the outfit she had on a pair of diamond stud earrings and stunning smile, which was all she needed. She was the embodiment of a perfect women as far as Scott was concerned, a classic beauty with porcelain skin, mature and wise beyond even his years, yet not afraid to enjoy life and do something silly or crazy just to make you smile. Yes, whoever won the heart of the women now standing next to him would be a lucky man, not only because they would have Marie but because he would have to meet Scott's approval first. He would certainly have to accomplish it because after all, Scott had to divorce Marie before they could have her.

"So, what are doing out here?" Marie asked him with her usual southern draw. As she took in the sight of the man next to her, she could understand more and more everyday why Jean had loved this man so much. He was more than easy on the eyes; in fact he was a blessing to look at especially when he was hard at work or contemplating a plan of action in his head on what he would have to do the next day or how to impress the higher in command in order to move up so that he would have access to more vital information. Or the way his jaw would twitch when he was confused, and then run his fingers through his hair when he was on the right track. But it was more than just the way he looked, truly there were no words for him. He was Scott. It was more than just his loyalty, honor, and friendship. It was the way he listened, how he told you to truth even if you didn't want to hear, the way he would hold you up if you needed him even when you didn't want to admit it and, contrary to what most people thought, the way he would make you laugh just to hear the sound. He was Scott, not just the Leader of the X-Men but her best friend, her husband.

"Let's just say, you can only watch Jace dance in circles for so long before you start to feel dizzy yourself," he joked as he nodded in the diction of the dance floor inside, where Jace was indeed still swinging his hips from side to side while turning circles. "Honestly I don't know how the man is standing, much less still doing that dance," he said with the sound of her laughter filling his ears. There was only one thing better than seeing that smile of hers and it was hearing her laugh.

"Well at, least he is having some fun," she stated in between her giggles, turning to come stand in front of Scott. "And that is more than I can say for you so… we are going to do it right here… right now," she told him with her soft southern draw sounding more sensual than usual.

Scott felt his month go dry as he looked down at the vision before him, surely she wasn't thinking about the same thing that had just ran through his mind at the sound of her words. "What?" he asked somewhat confused, choking on the coke he had just taken a drink of.

"Dancing," she said with a smile across her face that reached ear to ear, knowing full well the thoughts that had just crossed his mind.

"No," he replied slowly shaking is head to reinforce his answers, as she started to debate the subject.

"Yeah… Yes seriously…come on, nobody's around." she pleaded as she took his hands in hers.

"No.. I don't dance… You know I don't dance," he refused again, trying not to look her in the big brown eyes that he knew would be his undoing.

"Well you do now," she said pulling him further out onto the patio.

"I… I don't want to dance," he somewhat argued he with as he let her pull him.

"Oh come, you put one arm here. And then we just… Oh come on, I'm not gonna bite. Please Scott, come on. Just one dance," she begged him once again as their eyes met and locked together.

"Yeah I remember what happened the last time you said those words," he replied sarcastically but before Scott knew it his eyes caught her and he was moving slowly side to side with her, his arms circled about her waist while her were wrapped around his neck. When she finally broken eye contact and looked down he brushed a finger under her chin, to get her to move her eyes back to meet his gaze. Then with the same finger he let it slowly brush the side of her stunning face. "Marie, you know this past year has been… well unreal to say the least. I just keep wondering how it is I ended up here, married to you..."

"Well gee thanks, and I thought there for a second you were going to compliment me," Marie interrupted jokingly, with a smile across her face.

"Could you quite being a smartass for five seconds and let me tell you that I don't know what I would do without you," he stated in a playful tone. Then after brushing aside a strand of her hair from those beautiful brown eyes he continued "I mean it Marie… this past year I don't know how you did it but you were the one to help me find me again. And that means more to me than you'll ever know… you mean more to me than you'll ever know." He all but whispered the last of his confession to her as a familiar pull began to build and bought the two closer together. All he could think about was what those full lips tasted like under his, and then it happened. The rain had started pouring down on both of them causing them not only to get drenched as they ran inside but to burst out in laughter.

"Well so much for that dance," she said giggling at a now watered down Scott in his blue polo shirt and jeans.

"Hey I danced little, you better count your lucky stars you got that out of me," he joked with her as he brushed aside a soaked white streak from her face. Then there was that look again, that soft, innocent, sexy look that could only come from her… from Marie and the laughter was gone.

And once again as the pull was starting to bring them closer together when there was a bright flash, and both of their heads snapped to see Gabby holding a camera with a big smile on her face.

"Sorry to break up the moment and all but I couldn't help myself; it was just to good of a shot. Besides you two don't need to be falling all over each other this early in the evening we still have a lot of partying to do, remember," Gabby said as she set her camera down only to pick up a couple of shots that had jack and coke in them and hand one to each of them.

"Gabby I don't know if…" Scott started object as he tried to hand the drink back. For once, just once, he wanted to be intimate with Marie and neither of them have alcohol in their systems. It seemed that whenever they did sleep together either one or both of them were inebriated. He was starting to wonder why they always seemed to need at least a drink or two to have the courage to actually have sex with one another. They both wanted each other, he knew that, and they definitely both enjoyed it, so why either of them felt that the other or both of them needed to be intoxicated to take the other to bed was beyond him.

"I don't want to hear it Summers. You and your little lady have a lot of catching up to do, and not to mention this is suppose to be in celebration of YOUR anniversary. So slam it back because Jenna and Jace are bringing more this way," Dom more or less demanded as he came up behind his wife and up an arm around her.

"Dats right bra, and while you chug I am gonna take your wife out on da dance floor and show her how it's really done," Jace stated, his accent even thicker due to his drunken state, as he handed Scott his drink and grabbed Marie's hand and guided her to the dance floor. Marie laughed the whole way, simply because they all knew exactly how his dancing was done.

"So Gabs, does she have any clue about tomorrow night?" Scott asked Gabby, who was standing next to him, all the while his eyes never leaving Marie.

"Nope, no clue at all. I told you if she thought we were all going out to celebrate tonight she wouldn't suspect anything. You should have learned by now I'm genius like that," Gabby replied a smile across her face. "She is going to be so surprised."

"That's the plan," Scott said finally turning his gaze to his friend with a smile of his own.


	7. This Time With Feeling

**Chapter Seven – This Time With Feeling **

Scott had gotten off work an hour early and come home to an empty house just as Gabby had promised. In that time, he had put the Chinese take out he had pick up on their finest kitchen ware, set up the living for a candle light dinner for two, put the two present he had bought for Marie upstairs by the bed since he was sure that was where they were going to end up, then took a quick shower and got dressed in just a pair of jeans and white button up shirt. He was just finishing up getting dressed when he heard them pull in the drive; he hurried down the stairs and took a seat on the arm of the couch so that he could watch her expression on her face when she entered.

Marie walked in and froze; the room was lit with only candle light, a dinner for two sitting in front of her, and her husband looking more delicious than the meal. "Wow… Wow… I never expected… I always knew you were somewhat of a romantic I just never thought… you would… for me…" Marie stopped and took a breath. Scott had done this for her so why she was trying to bring Jean to his mind was just flat stupid. Ok moron, let's try this again Marie said to herself as she walked over the table and smelt the roses on the table. "So we have flowers, dinner, and candle light. Scott Summers, if I didn't know you better I would say you're trying to get laid."

"Then I guess you don't know me that well because getting laid was pretty much the only plan here," he said with the usual smile she seemed to put on his face.

"Well you definitely went all out, and it seems the only thing you forgot was the champagne to toast the fact we've made it a whole year without killing one another."

"I didn't forget it. I just don't want either of us drinking tonight."

"Really and why is that? Wait don't tell me, you think we are becoming alcoholics, don't you?"

"Well, aren't we cheeky tonight. And no, that's not the reason," he replied with a smile on his face. He stood and walked over to stand directly in front of her so that they were only a mere couple of inches apart. Then, he brushed his fingers through her hair and stopped at the nape of her neck only to tug lightly to lift her face to his before responding in a smooth, sexy voice. "But if you must know why I don't want any alcohol in us tonight, it's because tonight I don't just want you Marie… I want all of you… no drinking… no haziness… just you… and me," he said placing sweet soft kisses between his words as he spoke. Scott started high on her cheek bone beside her ear, the left side of her neck just above her collarbone, the right side of her neck just below her ear, the next kiss placed on the space between her hairline and corner of her right eye, then her on her forehead.

"You already have all of me," she confessed to him so softly it was almost a whisper with light shinning through her eyes.

He gently took her hands in his, still amazed that he could touch the perfect porcelain skin with his own. He threaded his fingers with hers, letting his thumb lightly scan the palm of her hands. He lifted his eyes from their intertwined hands to her exquisite face, soaking in all the gorgeous features she had to gaze upon. Then it was back, that gravitational strain pulling them closer together and with his lips almost touching hers, they could feel each breath the other made. All that was reverberating through his mind was that this is it, everything I never knew I wanted… Scott then slid his hands slowly up her arms to her shoulders and stopped so that he could tenderly pulled her to him, capturing her lips with his.

Scott kissed her as his hands started moving again, pushing back her hair. He slipped one hand into her tresses at the nape of her neck and the other lightly brushed down her back until it came to rest just above her ass and pulled the lower part of her body against his own. As he held her body close to his, he felt her arms circle around his neck and her finger sink into his head the same way his had hers. God, how he loved the feel of her hair in his hand, the feel of her body against his, the way their mouths melded together perfectly as if they had been made for each other. If he had never known what pure passion was in his life, he definitely knew it now. She sent waves of electric fire all over his body making him want to feel her all over all at once. When his tongue slid into her mouth, hers was there to meet his, to caress back, to match his passion with that of her own. He felt like he was going to die from pleasure when he heard Marie lightly moan his name after one of his hands had made its way to her breast and squeezed it gently.

Marie couldn't breathe, it was like being in a maelstrom of heat, longing, and frustration united in passion's sweet need for release. Time and place held no meaning in that erotic storm, just the two of them along with the need and love they shared. When Scott's hands slid down the length of her body to her hips to lift her against his hardness, she let out another moan of pleasure that seemed to break the spell they had both been under. He lifted his head and gazed down into her eyes. She stood there looking up at him, her hands now in his hair, fighting the urge to beg. "Scott…" was all she got out before he put a finger to her mouth to silence her.

"For once Marie, don't talk," he said in close to a whisper with a smirk on his face.

Marie was so lost in his touch she couldn't have laughed even if she'd had the chance, but then he was kissing her again, his tongue delving deeply, and all she could do was hold on and try to keep up.

Scott couldn't stop kissing her, his need to taste her was still too strong. He had dreamed more than a few times what kissing her would taste like without alcohol tainting the taste of her mouth or his and now he couldn't get enough. He also couldn't keep his hands from roaming for his need to know her skin as well as he knew everything else about her was too overwhelming. But soon it wasn't enough, when Marie grasped his buttocks and pressed herself against him, he let out a groan of his own. And it didn't take them long to strip each others clothes off as they stumbled up the stairs to their room.

He lowered himself and took her lips again with his, this time with even more softness and longing, while one of his hands moved up her abdomen, through the valley between her breast to rest on her neck with his thumb rubbing her face. He raised his head again to look down at her and caress her face with his eyes, soaking in ever inch of her, imprinting this moment in his mind.

She looked up at him with all the affection she possessed and thought to herself, there was only one way life could get any better than this. She licked her lips and ran her hand through Scott's hair and to his cheek before she started begged for him in a soft sexy southern voice, something she had become accustomed to doing. "Scott… please… I need you…"

It was only a moment before Scott gave in to her request and kissed her for all he was worth. He loved how silky smooth she was and how she was so soft in all the right places. Her breasts were plump and firm, quite the hand full. It wasn't long before his mouth worked it's way there and when he heard her gasp of pleasure it was like hearing the sweatiest music. Sure, they had done all these things before but one of them, or usually both, were in a haze due to the liquor. But this time everything was crystal clear for them both and it only made it that much better. If he really wanted to be honest about it, though, the truth of the matter was that he and Marie up until this point had only had sex, but tonight… tonight was truly the first time Scott was actually making love to his wife.

Marie could hardly breathe when his hand parted her legs and slipped between them. She nearly arched off the bed as his fingers started working their magic. Never could she have imagined anything so wildly thrilling as what Scott was doing to her, and in all the times they had been together she could never remember him doing this to her. Although this time, whether it was the first or not, she was never going to forget it.

One of Scott's hands moved and buried itself in her hair; and the other reached around to guide her legs about his waist; lifting her slightly he slid in her slowly, enjoying every inch of her that she gave to him until he buried all of himself deep within her. And for the first time Scott stayed still for a moment and just enjoyed being buried inside of her, his Marie. His Marie, the words seemed to linger inside his head and that scared him but it still didn't make it any less true. She was his, in everyway now. With that thought he gave in to the urge to taste her and kissed the curve of her neck down to breast then sucked on her nipple. When he felt her start moving in need, causing even deeper penetration, it ignited the fever in them both. He thrust slowly at first, making sure to make this night with her last as long as it possibly could. As they became increasingly heated he quickened, thrusting harder and faster, letting Marie set the pace which seemed to matched his own hunger. She was nothing short of miraculous as she opened, took, and gave back.

It was more thrilling than anything Marie could have or had ever imagined, for the maelstrom of intense pleasure that he was giving her burst into unrivaled bliss. And he was there with her every step of the way holding her, lengthening it, filling her, and guiding her gently back.

Usually after they reached their climax, they both passed out from exhaustion which was usually aided by the liquor in their system, but this time they laid there, wrapped in each others arms, caressing each other until they fell asleep. When Scott felt her stretch beneath him, he couldn't help but open his eyes and watch her as she positioned her body closer to his. How sinfully enticing she was, she made all the right moves, and just when he thought he couldn't handle anymore, she would moan in pleasure and make him feel like he was going to lose all control. He brushed a lock of white hair out of her face and a sound of pleasure purred deeply from her throat, as one of legs came up to rub sensuously against his back. Scott closed his eyes to feel her touch alone, if this kept up, he would never leave this bed again. She was so delicate, so beautiful, and so perfect; there was nothing about this woman that he didn't love. Love… he loved her…. Scott ran his eyes over her face as he let out a breath he hadn't even been aware he was holding, yeah… he did… somewhere in the past year they had been together, he had fallen in love with her.

Marie sighed into his chest as she nuzzled against him, not the least bit worried about what was going to come after this. In fact, even though she knew he didn't love her the way she would like him to, she was going to love him until the day she died for the tender side of him that he had just shown her. And for the first time she since had been with Scott she found herself well… speechless. She then opened her eyes and laid there still, silent, and looking over the face of the man she called her husband. Their eyes connected for a moment before Marie looked away, afraid that he just maybe able to see straight to down to her very soul. Last night had been so different from every other time they had been together, she was starting to question if she had just dreamt it all. It hadn't been just their lust, hunger, or need taking over the both of them like it usually was when they slept together. It had been more somehow. Every touch had held more feeling, more caring, more passion. It was almost as if for a short moment in time they were actually a married couple in love and not just posing as a husband and wife for a mission. She had a glimpse of what if would be like to truly be his wife, something she had realized not to long ago that she would actually like to be. But he had chosen Jean to play that role for him and even though she was gone, that was never going to change. As the sadness of what could never be started to envelope her mind her thoughts were interrupted just in time.

"Marie…" Scott said with his eyes still on her.

"Hold on… The one time I have nothing to say, and you want to talk?" Marie questioned, playing with Scott as she smiled up at him.

Scott bent his head and kissed her forehead, then looked her in the eyes. So much had happened in the past year and it had taken their time together the previous night for Scott to realize just how much had changed in his life, just how much his heart had change. And he was able to admit to himself now that Marie meant more to him than anyone ever had, with the exception of Jean. Although he did love Marie with her with every fiber of his being the same way he had Jean, all he could do now is hope and pray the he never lost Marie the same way he had lost Jean. The fact the he had actually fallen in love with his wife made him smile inside and out. Now, all he had to figure out was how to get her not only to stay married to him but to love him back.

Scott put one hand around her waist and his other hand in her silky hair. He then placed a gentle kiss on the top of her head before he let go of her and turned to pick up the present he had placed on his night stand earlier. He scooted back to put his back against the headboard of the bed as he pulled her to him so that they were sitting with her back against his chest. Then he gently sat the gifts that had been wrapped together in her lap. "I know it's not much but I thought you might like. Plus I figured it might just end up being an added bonus for me."

"Oh really and why is that?" Marie asked as she fought back the tears stinging her eyes, picking up the shoe sized box in her hands and beginning to carefully unwrap it.

"Well I think it may just shut your mouth about one the things you have been complaining about practically ever since the day we got here, which is pretty much our whole first year of marriage, now that I think about it," he said with his chin now resting on her shoulder and his arms around her waist, watching impatiently for her to see the contents of the box.

"Scott Summers, I have no clue as to what you're talking about, I never complain," she replied, her words dripping with sarcasm as she placed the paper to the side.

"And here I thought we had this strict policy to never lie to each other." He spoke with his eyes still glued to her hands as they worked off the top of the box to a framed 5 x 7 picture of the two of them that Gabby had taken the night before and a ring box. "See now you can't complain about us only having a couple of wedding pictures hanging in the house."

"And what's this?" Marie asked with silent tears running down her face as she picked up the ring box.

"Why don't you open it and find out," Scott whispered into her ear, his eyes still fixed on her hands.

Slowly Marie lifted the lid to the box only to reveal an engagement ring, a beautiful silver ring with a single princess cut diamond. She froze when she felt his hands lift the box from her grasp only to take the ring out so that he could place it on the finger along with the plain thin sliver band he had placed there a year ago. She turned to face him then, forgetting about the rivers running down her face until his hands cupped each side of her face and let his thumbs wipe them away.

"I know you never asked for it…. I just thought it was about time you had one."

"Scott… I don't…. I didn't…" was all she was able to say be simply placing her lips back on his before laying him down and making love to him for the second time that night.


	8. Everything Changes

**Chapter Eight- Everything Changes**

"Ok you. Get ready, we are going out tonight," Scott said as he slid his arms around her waist from where he stood behind her. Then he kissed the curve of her neck gently as she finished putting up the dishes she had just done, before shutting the cabinet. She really was quite the little house wife, always had everything cleaned and put away, and rarely ever did she ask Scott for his help.

"So, where are we going?" Marie asked as she ran her hands over his and leaned back into his embrace taking pleasure in the emotion that always overcame her when she was in his arms.

"Well if I tell you, you might not want to go," Scott whispered into her ear with a smile as he nipped at the bottom of her earlobe.

"Scott Summers, you should know by now that I will follow you just about anywhere." She smiled up at him, letting her very soul shine through her eyes. And she would, if he walked through fire and needed her beside him she would be there. The same way he had never failed to be there for her. She wasn't sure when exactly it had happened or how, but Scott Summers had become all she needed to be happy.

"So, let me guess, Dom, Gabby, Jenna, Jace, and us at the oh so wonderful bar…I'm… I'm going to go… go get ready." Marie said in between the little kisses he was raining on her lips. As she started walking up the stairway she couldn't help but laugh a little at the situation.

Here they were married and living with one another for almost a year and a half now, yet they couldn't seem to stop acting like they had only been married yesterday. When she reached the top of the stairs she turned her head to look back at Scott feeling his eyes still on her, and the smile that he gave her made her wonder how anyone could not love this man. He was the most honest man she had ever known in her life, in every sense of the word from what he said to how he acted. He never played games, or made her wonder if he really meant the things he said the way Logan had.

Sure, it wasn't as if they had told each other they loved one another exactly, but there was love and caring in every touch they shared none the less. Marie had known the night of their first anniversary for sure that she had fallen in love with him. And she was almost positive he had fallen in love with her too, or at least she prayed he had. It was all Marie could think about as she got dressed; Scott and their past year and a half together. Together. Every time the word went through her head, she couldn't help but get a silly grin on her face.

She looked at herself in the mirror and nodded in approval at her appearance. She had chosen a cream colored silk halter top that was so sheer it was see through with the exception of the built in bra, it came down around her hips, and like most of her shirts these days, it had a very low cut neck line, yet this one also had a plunging back that hung down just above her derriere and she had put on her cute new low cut hip hugger black leather pants with a pair of cream stiletto heels that matched her top perfectly. She had decided to pull her hair up in a tousled look with a few platinum stands framing her face. For jewelry she had selected a silver necklace with a single princess cut diamond pendant and a set of earrings to match the stunning ring Scott had given her a little over six months ago. She had heard him come into their room to change sometime ago, and knew he was probably waiting down stairs for her like the gentleman he always was. Although she had taken more time then usual to get ready, she wanted to look perfect since she had a few plans of her own for when they got home. Besides, she knew he wouldn't be mad.

"Ok, I'm ready." Marie said as she walked down the stairs towards Scott. He was wearing his black button up dress shirt with a pair of his nicer blue jeans and, as usual, he was more handsome than any other man Marie had ever laid her eyes on.

"Well then, let's…" Scott was frozen by the beauty standing before him. She was a vision. He had never imagined what a true goddess must look like, and now he would never need to, there was one standing right before him. He had found an actual goddess on earth. She was his. How he had gotten so lucky to have Marie in his life, especially after being with someone like Jean, he didn't know but he would never take it for granted that was for sure.

"Wow… you look…" he couldn't find the words, because there weren't any to describe her.

"Like a slut." Marie said playfully, sure he hadn't said anything, but the way he was starring at her now she was sure that that had crossed his mind. Yet she could also see that he liked what he saw.

"Yes, but just keep in mind that I'm the only one you're allowed to sell the goods to," Scott joked as he put his hands on her hips and guided her down the last few steps until she was in his embrace.

They stood there for what seemed like an eternity, each memorizing the other, until this moment was forever burned into their minds. Then, she felt his hand on her face, and she leaned towards him. Her lips brushed over his, only to come back once, twice, and then settled there for a gradually deepening kiss. The fact that they were supposed to be going out became nonexistent, thinking impossible with such pleasure clamoring for notice. When a voice clearing their throat filled the room, reluctantly they pulled away from each other to see who it was. They both smiled like school kids getting caught by the principle when Jenna and Gabby were spotted standing no more than five feet away form them in the front door.

"You two kids already having fun I see," Jenna said with a look of playfulness on her face as she winked at the both of them.

"Quit making out and just come on already," Gabby scolded as she rolled her eyes and made her way out of the door and to the hummer where Dom and Jace were waiting.

"Yeah Summers ,tell your slut to get a move on," Jenna said busting out in laughter before trailing after Gabby.

Scott then looked back at Marie as if to tell her he was sorry he had made plans to go out tonight after all. Marie gave him a smile of understanding; he didn't know how she did it, but she always seemed to know what he was saying or thinking without him ever having said a word. With that they left, Scott's arm draped protectively around his wife's shoulders as they made their way to the Hummer full of their friends.

* * *

It was just past midnight when they got home. Marie had just went upstairs to take a shower when Scott heard his cell phone ring in a tone that was given only to the Professor. He answered it as quickly as he could knowing that something important must have happened for him to be calling at such a late hour.

Xavier gave a sigh of distress at the sound of Scott's voice. He was hoping the boy wouldn't be awake and that maybe he could put this off until tomorrow. It was confirmed, Jean was alive, home, and she and Logan both had been demanding to see Scott and Rogue for the past week since they had returned. And while he was happier than words could express for Jean being alive the effect it was going to have on Scott and Rogue would be devastating. But what scared him the most was the factor that Logan would be throwing himself into the already growing chaos of the their life as well.

Then with an unsteady hand he rubbed his already throbbing temples and began to speak. "Scott… Yes, every one is quite fine, no need to worry about that. I am actually calling for quite the opposite reason, and please take a seat, this is something very important that may come as somewhat of a shock to you."

"I have some great news of my own." Scott said with a smile as he glanced at the stairs that Marie had just gone up. He knew that the Professor would be happy that not only had both Marie and himself had been able to move on and find happiness, but he would also be thrilled that they found it together.

"Scott… "The professor had started when he processed what it was Scott had just said, he knew that this mission would help bring Scott and Rogue closer, between the calls and the letters he had known for quite sometime that the two were falling in love with each other and now it seemed that Scott had finally been able to see what he already knew. He promptly bowed his head at what should have been the most excellent news to hear. Here he was a telepath, thinking that the situation couldn't get any worse than it already has and yet it had without him getting the slightest premonition.

"Charles, are you there?" Scott asked after several seconds of silence.

"Scott, I have some very important information that I must notify you of. Unfortunately I fear I don't know how to address it except directly…Jean is alive… " Charles waited for Scott to react to the knowledge that his thought to be dead fiancée was in fact alive. But when no reaction came he decided to continue. "And she is here and wanting quite badly to see you."

"That's… that's impossible," was all he could say as a thousand thoughts per second were running through his mind. He rested his head in his hands as he tried to slow his thoughts and understand what this all could mean. He knew that Charles would not tell him such a thing without it being true. Jean… Jean was… alive… that single thought alone brought a sense of euphoria over him that was unrivaled, and in an instant he couldn't wait to see her, to hold her, to tell about… Oh god… Marie…and as soon as her name came across his mind his gaze went back to the stairs. His mind was racing, wanting, needing to know what this would do to Marie. How could he let her go? How could he not go back to Jean? How much pain would it cause Jean to know that he had loved another? The questions came one after another going as quickly as they came.

"Professor… I …" He was at a lost for words, his mind now drawing nothing more than a blank.

"I wish I could help, but this is something that only Jean, Logan and yourself can decide Scott. With that said I must tell you that Jean isn't the only one that has returned home… Logan of course was with her and just as Jean is wanting to see you, Logan is demanding to see Rogue." He could feel Scott's fury from where he was at as soon as he had said Logan's' name. He had expected this, for Logan was the only man to ever turn Jeans' eyes away from him. Not to mention the women he was now in love with had once belonged heart, body, and soul to the same man. And as sure as Scott detested Logan, he knew Logan shared the same conclusion of Scott. How he was going to keep the two of them from killing each other was one of the many things now pressing on his mind.

"Which brings me to the other reason I am calling, I was hoping that arrangements could be made for all of us to meet tomorrow or maybe even Sunday."

"Yes, there is a plane leaving out of here at 4 AM to New York City, and we are allowed one emergency leave… so I should…I should be able to get us on it. " He stood and slowly made his way to the window next to their front door.

"I will see you both in the morning then." Charles simply replied, knowing no more could be said.

"Sure, see you soon," Scott said before hanging up the phone, his eyes still fixed on the view out of the window yet not really seeing anything at all.

"So I was thinking…. Scott what's happened?" Marie asked as she came into view and stopped dead in her tracks as she came to the bottom of the stairs.

"Professor just called…" he ran a hand through his hair and turned, leaning his back against the wall so that he could face her. "It seems Logan and Jean returned to the mansion sometime last week…" her face looked so confused and haunted at the same time, that it likely mirrored his own. He couldn't believe this was all happening, it seemed so unreal, bending his head he delivered the rest of the news. "They both have been asking to see us… so I told the professor I would have us on the plane that leaves this morning at 4 AM to New York City."

"I… I … guess I should get… get packing so you can go ahead and get clearance." Marie mumbled more to herself than Scott as she wadded up a piece of paper and headed back upstairs to their room. Jean… Jean was alive and she had come home. Home to all the people she loved; to the man she loved…Scott. The words haunted her, replaying over and over in her head as she walked into their room in a silent daze. She took a seat on their bed, the same bed they had made love in just the night before, and looked at the picture taken of them that Scott had given her sitting on the dresser. She gazed at the picture as her chest tightened and her eyes filled with tears when she reached the realization that her time with Scott was over. She wasn't going to waste her time fooling herself, she knew Scott might love her but this was Jean, his heart, soul, and one true love. Marie looked around their room, as everything started to finally sink in. She felt it deep inside, she shouldn't be here.

Finding her feet again, she walked over to the closet and pulled the same green duffle bag she had always used to carry her things out from the top shelf and started stuffing the belongings she would need inside it as fast as she possibly could. As she wiped a few tears away then reached down and slowly zipped up the duffle, she caught sight of the ring she was just given a little more than six months ago by the man she had thought she might get to spend the rest of her life with. It was just as beautiful to her as when he slipped it on her finger, yet, looking at it now as she held her hand out in front of her it carried sadness with it, because she knew it no longer belonged there. She started to slip it off her finger, and her heart broke at how willingly it slid from its place, yet she couldn't bring herself to remove it completely. She promptly pushed the ring back to its rightful place, and sat on the bed as she started to cry.

How could life be so cruel? Just when she thought everything was good, just when she had found out that they had been given a gift she never thought she could have, it was being ripped out of her grasp. She couldn't tell him now that she had fallen in love with him, should she even tell him at all…. Pushing the horrid thoughts from her mind, she brushed the tears they caused from her face as she tried to busy herself and went to work on packing Scott's things and doing her best to keep her mind from the fact that their life here, together, was pretty much over.


	9. Reconnecting To The Past

**Chapter Nine- Reconnecting To The Past**

The plane ride was more than just quiet, it was deadly silent. Neither Scott nor Marie could find anything to say. And Marie had tried to talk to him, she really had, but every time she tried to speak, tears would begin stinging her eyes and she would have to look away and choke back her words. She didn't want him to see her cry since technically she had no reason to. After all, how can a person lose something they never really had? Sure, she might legally be his wife, but he had never been anything but honest with her about his feelings, and Jean always has been and always will be his number one.

Just like the plane, the car ride to the hotel, the time it took for the to check into the large suite the Professor had reserved for them all, even the elevator ride up to the 15th floor had all been done in deafening quiet. Scott had noticed her soundlessly crying and all he wanted to do was pull her into his arms and try to make the hurt fade away, but he didn't have the right to do that anymore. Just as he no longer had the right to ask her to stay with him, no matter how much he wanted to.

"Marie, I…" Scott began unable to remain in the silence any longer as he watched her set her bag down on the bed. They were the first to sign into the hotel and he knew some things had to be settled before Jean and Logan arrived. She knew though, Scott could see it when she looked at him and she knew he still loved Jean, and he could already tell she was planning on leaving. For a moment he couldn't breathe. He watched her as she started to unpack her bag, and his heart broke at the pain he saw in her eyes. And even though it was more than obvious that she was already trying to find a way out, he couldn't help but find himself asking her what he already knew was true. "So when we get back you're leaving?"

"What else am I suppose to do Scott? I can't… I can't do this. Not with…. please don't make this any harder on me than… than it already is, ok… As a matter of fact… Here… this… this belongs to you." Marie could barely breathe, much less talk, at this point. Tears cascading down her now pink cheeks, she held her ring out to him, and when he made no move to take it she turned and went to sit it on his bag she had packed him, only to have him grab her hand.

"You're still my wife, Marie… and nothing has happened to change that fact," Scott said more forcibly than he meant too, as he took the ring from her only to put it right back on her hand. It hurt, seeing her finger without his ring. Then, feeling the need to push his point that they weren't completely finished yet further, he put both of his hands on each side of her soft face and pulled her gaze up to meet his own.

She cherished the way his hands felt on her face, the way his thumbs brushed away some of her continuing tears, the way his palms cradled her cheeks lovingly, and knowing that this was probably the last time she would ever feel them there, she tried to engrave the feeling of them in her memory. But at the same time his touched burned because she knew the longer he had her here, the harder it was going to be for her to walk away. And although it pained her more than words could describe, she knew that walking away now was the right thing to do. If she stayed and waited for him to leave her when he finally realized he wanted Jean, it would destroy her.

"Don't do this… don't…just give up on everything we've built together… we're married…and this past year has been…" Scott tired to plead with her, but he was at a loss for words. He wanted to promise her everything would be ok, that he would stay with her forever, that Jean coming back meant nothing. But he couldn't because he didn't know that everything was going to be ok for them, if there was a them any more. He wanted to stay with her forever, but truthfully he wasn't sure if he could. He wished his love for her was strong enough that Jean's coming home alive didn't mean anything, but that wasn't true. Still, he was terrified of losing her, of watching her walk out on the life they had built together, of not waking up to her smile everyday. How could he ask her to stay with him, when he himself couldn't be sure that he wasn't going to leave in the end.

"Stop… please… I'm sorry… I'm so sorry… but I can't… I… I have to be realistic here… don't you see… there's… " Marie started only to be cut off by his lips crashing down on hers.

If he couldn't say what he wanted with words, he decided to beg her to stay with his touch. Cutting off her words as he pressed his lips to hers, he slid his hands down her neck to her back and pressed her body against his. He tasted the salt from her tears on her moist full lips and deepened the kiss willing her at the same time to stay.

Before she knew it she was lost in his kiss, the way his lips were moving across hers, he was showing her how much he cared for her. But this time it was different because no matter if or how much he loved her, and she knew in some way that he did, he loved Jean more. And it was only a matter of time before… Cutting the thought short Marie put her hands against his chest and pushed him away, taking a step back herself to father the distance between them.

"Why… Why are doing this? Why can't we just…" Scott started now infuriated, only to be cut off by his young southern beauty.

"Don't you dare make this about us when you know this has nothing to do with you and me as a couple," she started yelling in between sobs.

"Really…well, you sure as hell could have fooled me," he said in a sarcastic tone, adding in a smirk to top it off.

"Don't you give me that look….you know… you know my leaving isn't about us… you know it's not… it's not about me doubting you… or how much I mean to you… it's… it's about knowing how… how much more… she means to you… knowing… you love her." Marie was hardly even able to finish in a whisper, as she continued to sob uncontrollably.

"Marie… baby, I…" Scott started as he took and step towards her and reached out to her again. Her words had cut him deep, deeper than she would ever know because he knew they were true. And the fact that she knew it made it worse. He did love Jean, but he didn't love her more than Marie, and the fact that she thought that brought a pain to his heart. He loved both of them, and that was the problem. He didn't love one more than the other, he loved them both for the people they were, and how they made him feel.

"No…" she said taking another step back and swiping his hand away. "No… I can't… don't you understand… I don't want to leave… I have to… because if… if I were to stay and watch… watch you… choose her…I …" Marie tried to explain now, gasping for air in between her words. The pieces of her heart that had already broken were breaking yet again; she had been hit, kicked, and slammed into by some of the strongest mutants in the world yet there was still no pain that came close to the aching she was feeling now, and it seemed to be growing stronger with every second.

"You know what… Jean's not the only problem here… what about your pal Logan, huh… your actually going to stand here and blame everything on me and Jean. When we both know you just can't wait to have that bastard back in your bed…. And here I thought… but you know what… you want to run back to him Marie… go ahead… I don't want anyone who's too weak to fight for us anyway…" Scott said as a rage greater than he had ever known come over him, when he realized she was going to leave any ways. No matter what he said, nothing short of tying her to a chair or the bed when they got back to the base was going to keep her there. And the realization made him snap for the first time in his life. "I think I'll share a room with Jean tonight after all hon. See you tomorrow morning." He delivered the final blow as he turned, picked up his bag, his face hard and devoid of any emotion, and walked across the living area to one of the other four rooms of suite.

She didn't know she could, but after shutting her door somehow she managed to start crying even harder than she already had been. With nothing left inside of her, she collapsed on her bed crying herself to sleep.

Scott slammed the door shut and locked it into place. Leaning his back against the door he rubbed away the wetness on his cheeks. More tears started burning his eyes, and when it occurred to him that with the harsh words he had just spoken to her out of his uncontrollable rage he had probably lost her forever, he threw the lamp that had been sitting on the dresser beside him across the room and watched as it shattered against the wall. It was true that he had been somewhat worried about Logan wanting Marie back in his life again, but never had Scott honestly doubted his wife. Never in his life had he snapped the way he had just done with Marie; in fact this was probably one of the most heated arguments and the harshest words he had ever said to anyone with the exception of Logan. He hung his head and walked over to the bed, taking a seat. How could he have lost control over his temper like that? How could he have said those things to her when she was already hurting so badly? How could he have said those things to her at all? If she never forgave him he would completely understand why. He was losing her so fast, he didn't even have a chance to grab her and hang on, and now, he had practically helped push her out the door. _"God, how am I going to live without you?" _was all he could think until he heard the phone next to his bed ring.

Time had froze, every second seemed to be more like an hour as Scott stood next to the couch, watching and waiting for the people who had just called to make their entrance. Scott knew that with Jean he had to be careful of what he was projecting. He had to find a way to hide his heartbreak over the fight he and Marie had only a few hours ago. Scott also knew that Jean would expect everything to be the same between the two of them and, although he knew he still loved Jean, at this moment he wasn't to confident that he could treat her as the only love of his life the way he used to. The way he did before he found Marie. First through the door was the Professor with a smile on his face that unrivaled any other smile that Scott had ever seen the man have. Then she was there, her short coppery red hair shining, her eyes gleaming with joy, and her smile just as bright as, if not brighter than, the man who had entered before her. He couldn't believe that she was actually there, that she was real, that she was alive. He couldn't take his eyes off of her. God, she was more beautiful than he remembered her, if that was even possible. Suddenly he was holding her in his arms, squeezing her tightly as if she was going to disappear at any given second. He wasn't sure if he had been the one to walk to her and gather her in his arms or if she had reached him and simply wrapped her arms around him but at the moment he didn't care.

"Scott… I missed you so much," Jean whispered in his ear. She felt his despair in the time she had been dead, and the overwhelming disbelief that he was truly holding her in his arms and her heart broke for what he had been through. She knew she would spend the rest of her life if she had to making it up to him. How she could have ever had a moments pause about her feelings for the man that was now holding her in his arms she would never understand. She had been attracted to Logan, that was true, but Scott had captured more than just her attention the way Logan had. Scott had captured her soul and she vowed to never take him for granted again.

"Jean…" was all Scott could say before air got caught in his throat. Over her shoulder he saw him now coming in the room. Logan. The professor must have noticed where Scott's gaze was, because before he had time to say anything to the bastard Charles had called everyone's attention as he spoke.

"Well, why don't we continue the little reunion over here where we can all talk?" He stated as he took one of Jeans hands in his own and gave it a loving squeeze.

As both of them started to follow the professor, Jean paused and turned to Logan who was now standing in front of the short hall that lead to Marie's door "Logan… where are you headed?"

"Well… I … I figured I have a reunion of my own to attended to… why don't all of you go ahead and talk, Marie and I need some time," Logan replied as he ran a hand though his wild hair.

The instant Logan had said her name Scott tensed as the thoughts of Logan and Marie having a private reunion flooded his mind and he wanted to kill the man on the spot where he was standing. In fact if Scott still had possession of his powers he probably would have. "Rogue's sleeping… sorry guess it will have to wait until morning," Scott stated in a snide tone, trying with all his might not to project too many feelings since he was still holding Jean in his arms.

"Thanks for the warning Scooter… but I know how to wake her up with a smile on her face, done it more times than I can count," Logan replied sending Scott a smug smile before he walked into Marie's room.

Scott stood there in a silent rage. Here he was, holding Jean in his arms, something he dreamt of, prayed for since the day he lost her, and all he could think about was slowly killing the man who just walked in the same room he had left his wife in broken and alone. Logan hadn't said anything, yet in just the few minutes since his entrance he had made it crystal clear to Scott he was here for one reason and one reason only. Looking now at the woman he held in his arms, her face scared and confused beyond belief, he knew he had been projecting, and all he could do was cover by touching her face softly with his hand and saying "I believe we could use a little private time ourselves."

"I believe your right," was all Jean could form into words. It was no surprise to her that Scott wanted to pummel Logan, that much she had always known, what she couldn't comprehend and was completely perplexed about was the fact that his rage was over Rogue. And the feelings she had been sensing coming off of him in waves was more than that of a protective brother. No, they were more involved, more intense somehow. But she didn't care, she knew he loved and wanted her, after all, he had just said as much. With that she excused their presence from the Professor and walked with him hand and hand to his room.

Charles knew that things were going to be hard for all of them but this; this was just out right chaos. Still there was nothing he could do, as much as he would love to only to save all of them hurt and pain, he could not make their choices for them. With a mournful sigh he then made his way to one of the two remaining vacant rooms.


	10. Coming Undone

**A/N: Okay my peeps here is the next chapter I hope you enjoy. Oh, and I would like to thank once again my amazing beta pyrena93. Mwah, love ya. Thanks so much for all your help, you are the best.**

**Chapter Ten – Coming Undone **

She had been lying on the bed for at least a couple of hours now. She didn't want to open her eyes, which were now red and swollen from crying, but she needed to go the bathroom. Finally she pushed herself off the bed and made her way in to the small bathroom connected to her room. She had tried, God help her she had, but she couldn't make the thoughts go away, and the pain seemed like it was going to consume her. Her mind kept telling her it was the right thing to do, to leave him before he went back to Jean anyways yet her heart was still screaming that she made a mistake. She had finished washing and drying her hands, had closed the door to the bathroom, and went to retake her place back on the comfy king size bed, when she heard a knock at the door. Her heart stopped beating, as hopes of Scott standing in front of her when she opened it telling her it was only her he loved flooded her mind. Coming to her senses she shook the images out of her head. Jean would be here by now, there was no way it could be him. No, they were probable lost in one another arms right now, she told her self as she wiped the now fresh tears off her face and walked to the door. When she opened it, she found the one person in the world she thought she would never see again standing before her. Sure, she had known that he was coming, but with Logan you never could count on him actually being there until he was physically standing in front of you. Without a word, Marie moved aside and let him in before shutting the door.

"Hey, Kid." Logan finally said as he reached up and brushed a stand of her white bangs from her drained and puffy face. Even with her face wet and swollen, she was still the most beautiful creature he had ever set eyes on, and she was his. She knew it, he knew it and it was only a matter of time before she came to him.

Memories came rushing back and the old feelings mixed with all the emotions she was dealing with already where now overwhelming her. It was Logan, the one she had thought she had lost forever, the one person she had dreamt of being with for most of her life, her first love, her own personal hero. Sure, even considering the fact that she hadn't seen or talked to him in over four years, she still did, and probably always will, think of him as one of her best friends. God, how she had missed him. Maybe if he had stayed she wouldn't be going through this pain right now, because she would still be waiting for him to return the love she had always so freely given to him. She wanted to tell him everything. She wanted to ask him questions about that night, why he was so quick to leave her, she wanted to ask him what the hell had happened, why he was finally here with her, why he didn't call or write in the four years he was away. Yet her mouth wouldn't move. All she could bring herself to do was cover her face as she started crying again. This was too much. Too much too soon, and all she wished at that moment was that she could fade away into nothing so that she didn't have to feel anything anymore.

Then his arms were around her, holding her, and she could feel his warm breath in her ear as he whispered sweet nothings to her, letting her know it would all be ok, that he was here now, and that he would never leave her like that again. Still, all she could do was cry, and she felt her self being lifted from the floor and the next thing she knew she was lying on her bed with her head resting against his chest as he stroked her hair doing his best to comfort her. And it was working; it wasn't long before she drifted into the darkness of sleep that she so desperately needed only to have the worst nightmare she could ever have.

_"I don't understand why? Why Scott, why can't you stay?" Marie screamed at him as he packed his bags. Marie, feeling weak in the knees, then sat in the chair behind her to hold her head in her hands as she let her tears finally flow. _Dear God, he is really going to leave me, s_he thought to herself. She couldn't think, she couldn't see, she couldn't breathe, she couldn't feel anything but the pain. It was as if the rest of her body had gone numb. It really did feel as if her heart were breaking. She was literally having pains in her chest that seemed to keep growing with the sobs she made, and all she could do was sit there and cry. He was leaving her, he was really leaving and she knew he was never coming back to her._

_"Please, Scott, please don't leave me. . . You can't, I love you. . . I can't live without you; please. . . I promise I will do anything. I promise you, anything . . . Scott… Please. . . " Marie pleaded as she rose to her feet and walked over to him and took his face in her hands, only to start putting small kisses on his cheeks in between her pleas. She didn't care if she was begging him; she would kiss his feet if he asked her to, anything to make him stay. "We promised forever, Scott. Remember?" she whispered into his ear as she hugged him to her as if to try and make him stay by force but he carefully unwrapped her arms from him and put them to her sides._

_Scott then laid his arms on Marie's own and looked her in the face, before he began to speak._ _"Rogue, I can't stay with you anymore, you know that. I'm not in love with you, at least not the way you want me to be. Jean is the one I want. I'm sorry. I have to go. I do care about you and I always will, but I love her." With that said Scott let her go and grabbed the three bags he had packed off the bed and walked briskly through their small room and out the door. _

_Hearing the door close shut Marie dropped to her knees and then fell to the floor. _

"No don't go…" She screamed sat up straight, waking up to the same pain and tears that had just consumed her dream. Then she felt his hand on her shoulder, oh thank God, it had all been a dream, a horrible terrifying dream.

"Marie, darlin' you ok?" Logan asked as he pulled himself up to sit beside her resting a loving hand on her shoulder only to slide it down and rub her back.

With the sound of his voice alone she would have known that it was Logan's and not Scotts hand on her shoulder but the word dralin' was what truly made her realize that it wasn't a dream. That the nightmare she'd had was true, well most of it anyways. And with the realization came a renewed flow of tears down her puffy red cheeks as she turned and buried her face in Logan chest and let his strong arms hold her again. "No… I'm not… I'm not ok… Logan… No where close to it."

"I know darlin'…. I know..." Logan said without hesitation, because he did know. He knew her little secret; he could hear its heart beating along with theirs as she had slept. And he after the way she had awoken just now with the words "don't go" on her lips, he also knew the reason she had been so upset when he came into the room. She was probable terrified that when he found out he would leave her again. Yet as much as it hurt, he wasn't going any where. He wouldn't leave her, not this time. He needed her too much, and it took having her as his own and then losing her to figure that out. So now that he had her back in his arms he was going to make fucking sure that was where she was going to stay.

"No Logan you don't, there's no way you could…" Marie started to ramble as she pushed herself off the bed and started to pace in front of the bed Logan was still sitting on.

"You're pregnant," Logan stated without pause, bringing Marie to a dead stop. "Enhanced hearing remember… and add the sound of an extra heartbeat in the room to the brilliant news of your little mission with the boy Wonder Wheels told me and Jean about, plus you posing as his wife… not to mention his smell is all over you… It was pretty easy to figure out. It's also pretty fucking clear the Dick is the kid's father," he declared to her with a little more hurt in his voice than he would have liked.

"Logan I…I didn't mean," Marie said with a voice as shaky as her knees were. She could hardly breathe. It was true, she was pregnant and up until now she had been able to put everything concerning the baby she was carrying to the back of her mind. How she was going to tell Scott she was pregnant? How would he react to the news? How this baby would affect his life now that Jean was back … for that matter should she even tell him at all? Her eyes were once again filled with tears. And on top of all that Logan knew, and it hurt him she could see it so clearly in his eyes.

"Marie stop…" Logan cut her off as he slid off the bed and walked to stand in front of the woman who had haunted his every dream for the past four years. With one hand he brushed back her hair as he used his other to steady her by resting it on her upper left arm. "You don't owe me any kind of explanation… or apologizes especially after way I treated you and then just left the way I did. Look Kid, you know better than anyone I'm not good with all this emotional crap but I realized something while I was gone. And that is…. You are the only thing in this world I can't live without."

Marie lower her forehead to rest on his chest. Two maybe even three years ago she would have killed someone to hear Logan say something to her like the words he had just spoken, which was most likely the closet Logan would ever get to saying I love you. But now, now she just didn't know how to react. She was married to Scott, she was carrying his child, and even though right now she hated to admit it, she was in love with him. Yet, still this was Logan, the man she had spent more than a decade of her life loving.

Laying his chin atop her head, he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her into his embrace as he breathed in the scent of her hair.

"Did you know its past lunch already and I bet you didn't even eat anything for breakfast?" After feeling her shaking her head no against his chest confirming his accusations, he rubbed her upper arms with his hands and took a step back as he caught her eyes with his own. "Well then we need to get something in you so that you and your little passenger don't starve to death." Looking down at the place her abdomen was sheltering her baby, Logan couldn't help but vision the sight of Marie lovingly embracing her new born child. Gradually he let his left hand slid down the length of her arm until the palm of his hand rested over the spot that would soon be extended with child. Keeping his eyes focused on his hand as he lightly moved his fingers across her, he asked the question he was almost certain to which the answer was no. "Have you told him yet?"

"No… I … I only found out a couple of days ago." She said as she watched the way his fingers slowly graze over her lower abdomen. She loved that he was so accepting, so loving with her and her unborn child but still, it broke her heart that Logan was the one she was sharing this moment with and not Scott.

It was a little past two in the afternoon, but thanks to the curtains being drawn it could have been two in the morning considering how dark it was in the room. Scott had been sitting on the edge of the bed holding his head in his hands feeling sick to his stomach for a good five minutes now. Finally he lifted his head slowly, his eyes shifted to focus on the sliver wedding band wrapped around the ring finger of his left hand. Reluctantly Scott turned his head and gazed upon the naked body of the woman he had once said was the only woman he could ever love, sleeping tangled in the satin light blue bed sheets. He loved her, he had missed her more than he could ever put into words, but this was wrong. Everything about today had been all wrong starting with the call the Professor had made at one this morning, all the way up to his and Jeans intimate reunion. Hell, just 36 hours ago Marie had been the naked woman tangled in the bed sheets and sleeping peacefully beside him, just a mere 15 hour ago he had been a happily married man who couldn't wait to get home to his wife. Yet here he sat in a ritzy hotel in the middle of New York City at 2 o'clock in the afternoon with a woman beside him who seemed more like a stranger now than the person he had spent most of his life loving.

He reached down, grabbed his blue jeans, and slipped them on as he made his way out of the room. Looking around the bright living room, it took Scott's eyes a moment to adjust to the harsh light of the room, or maybe it was the harsh truth of what it was he had just done that was hitting him. Following the light to where in poured into the room, Scott wondered out on to the balcony and looked out over the city as he recalled the events of what had happened only a few nights ago.

_He had walked in the door to find his wife leaning against the arm of the couch facing the door with a gown that was as transparent as her intentions. The sides that hung only just above her knees were split clear to her hips, revealing more leg than she'd ever shown to anyone, with the exclusion of Scott. It was made of thin, soft sliver silk, sleeveless, the bodice in a deep V, the straps mere ties that could be undone easily._

_"You look- beautiful," Scott had remembered saying as he shut the door behind him. It wasn't quite the words he wanted to use, but he couldn't think of anything else after laying his eyes on her. He had been standing in front of her within moments, taking a lock of her long hair in his hand only to let is slid through his fingers. _

_"Absolutely beautiful," he repeated as his mouth went dry from the nearness of her. He drew her eyes up to his own gaze and the look in the big brown eyes, so admiring, warmed him even more. He dipped his head down to kiss the curve of her neck and all he could think of was how even the smell of her was thrilling to his senses. He found himself staring at her mouth, almost willing her to kiss him, knowing how wonderful her lips felt against his. How kissing her seemed to give him some kind of unexplainable peace. Then, with a small pull of the ties on her shoulders, the thin silk pooled at her feet._

_"We will have to buy you more of those," he said with a husky voice as a hand moved up her chest to rest on the curve of her neck. "Many more." Then he raised both hands to cup her cheeks. " Do you know how much you mean to me?" He asked her softly, truly wondering if she knew how much. If she any idea._

_"Why don't you show me," Marie answered him in a mere whisper. And no sooner than she said it, he was kissing her, lovingly kissing her. Parting her lips, his tongue dancing with hers. He moved closer as she gripped at the shirt that kept her from exploring his chest. He then lifted her in his arms, carried her to the bed and laid her gently there, dinner forgotten. _

Suddenly his mind was ripped away from one of the memories he would always hold dear as he heard Jeans voice from behind him.

"Scott, what are you doing out here?" She questioned as she raise her hand to cover her eyes as the sun shined into them.

Scott couldn't bring himself to look at her, much less answer her question, especially after just having made love to her only to come out here and fantasize about another woman. So he did the only thing he could do and changed the subject all together. "Are you sure you want this again?"

"Want what again, Scott?" Jean asked, confused by his question. She was tempted to use her telepathy to understand what it was he was saying but she knew he would explain on his own. With the bed sheet now wrapped around her and posing as her clothing, Jean walked up behind him and started lying kisses on his bare back.

"You and me…" he said in almost a whisper. It was a little upsetting to talk about a future with Jean when he was still married to another woman

"Why wouldn't I want to be with you?" She said as she stepped to around him and slid herself between him and the rail of the balcony. "Scott, I know we had our problems. But… after everything that has happened I know now you are the only man for me. We were made for each other," she finished in a whisper as her lips melded themselves to his.

Scott was slow to respond to her kisses at first but with a little persuasion from Jean he became a willing participant as their lips and hands started to wander each other bodies.

From there, a young woman with platinum streaks backed away slowly from the scene on the balcony she had stumbled upon in her quest for food.


	11. Choices And Mistakes

**Chapter 11 – Choices And Mistakes**

For a moment she was frozen, her mind and body had become completely numb as she watched Scott and Jean get lost in one another. Marie's eyelids fell shut, letting out a silent tear as she tried to block out not only the vision of Scott holding Jean in his arms kissing her with a passion Marie herself knew all too well, but also the pain that was now reverberating through her body. Feeling her knees growing weaker with each agonizing heart beat she blindly backed up so that she could support herself on the wall behind her. Even with her eyes closed her mind replayed the scene of the two of them over and over again.

As if against her own will Marie lifted her eyelids to focused on the view outside for the second time, finding Jean now running one of her hands into Scotts hair at the nape of his neck while her other hand made its way down his back, leaving red lines marking its path, as Scott lifted her legs around his waist. Marie's own hand was now covering her mouth to help silent the crying she fought to choke back.

Once again slamming her eyes shut to the unbearable scene playing out before her on the balcony, Marie tried to steady her breathing which was now becoming more difficult as her stomach started feeling as if it was turning flip-flops and tying into knots. Then it hit her, and she quickly turned and ran back to her bedroom. Bumping into a concerned Logan she pushed straight past him to the bathroom. No sooner than the door clicked shut behind her, Marie lost what little bit of dinner she still had left in her system into the toilet.

After rinsing out her mouth with a small bottle of Scope, compliments of the hotel, she leaned back against the closed door and sunk slowly to the floor as her knees finally gave away. Her hands then started wiping harshly at the renewed flow of unwanted tears streaming down her face. How could he? How could that bastard stand in front of her just a few hours ago and beg for her to help him fight for a marriage that was obliviously not near as important to him as his beloved Jean. Perfect fucking Jean, who without even trying, had managed for the second time to steal away the man Marie loved with all her heart. Frustrated, angry, hurt and broken, Marie ran her fingers through her hair as she rested her forehead against her knees.

If she really wanted to be honest with her self, though, and face the ugly truth, she knew that when it came down to, it this whole situation was just a product of her own making. She was the one who had fooled her self into believing that their sham of a marriage could actually be true love, not Scott. Hell, she had known all along that if Logan had ever came back with Jean alive and kicking that nothing would stop Scott from walking back into her arms. And for that matter, Scott had never once talked about or promised any kind of a future for the two of them beyond the mission. No, this was all Marie and her assumptions that their sexual attraction had been more than having a good time and enjoying each other while they were on the assignment given to them.

"Marie, darlin'… you need me to get you anything?" Logan asked after lightly tapping on the bathroom door.

***************************************

"Scott" Jean moaned a whisper in his ear as she lifted her legs around him.

Scott heard her as she moaned his name against his ear, soft and low, something that was quite common for Jean to do when she was enjoying his touch. Yet completely unlike Marie who always nipped, kissed, and moaned against his lips as their tongues intertwined, the more enjoyment Marie had, the more she tried to give back. Suddenly, Scott pulled away his lips and looked at Jean who now had a questioning look on her face. Then he realized what he was about to do for the second time that day and Scott pushed her away. Jean almost hit the balcony floor as Scott dropped her, as if the very touch of her skin burned him. "I'm sorry Jean…. I can't…. I just can't do this again." Scott said as he backed away from her, only to turn and quickly make his way back to the bedroom, leaving a shocked and very confused Jean standing in nothing but a sheet in the afternoon air.

Grabbing his bag of clothes off the dresser as he passed it, Scott made a bee line for the bathroom, turning on a blasting hot shower and slid the lock into place on the closed door, just incase Jean got the notion to join him. This was insane, pure madness he thought as he got in the shower and blasted the hot water to soak in. It had been as if he was struck by lighting the instance Jean had whispered his name into his ear. He knew that the love and the caring he had for her was nothing more than what he had for any of his other friends. It's wasn't the soul shattering, earth quaking love that it used to be, it was simply Jean, that woman who had once been his entire world. Pushing all the thoughts of his recent mistakes where both Jean and Marie were concerned, Scott finished his shower and then went in search of the Professor to handle all business matters that needing attending.

**************************************

"Logan?" Marie more or less asked for his attention.

"Yeah." Logan automatically replied as he ran his fingers through her hair. He had finally managed to get her to open the bathroom door to him. After entering to find her in the floor looking pale, he grabbed a wash rag and soaked it with warm water. Once he had it ringed out in the sink, Logan turned back to the green tinted girl laying of the floor. He bent down, picked her up from the floor and then carried her to the bed where she now resided with her head in his lap, the warm wash cloth spread across her forehead.

"That night that you… the night you left… why..." Marie didn't know how to ask what it was that she needed to know. How could she put into words and ask him why he seemed so crazed, like a trapped animal that had just broken free of their chains.

Logan took a deep breath, he knew what she was speaking of, and that eventually he would have to answers these questions if he ever had any chance of getting her back.

"What is it you want to know, Kid?" he asked in return to buy a little time, not really sure where to start. He locked eyes with her as she looked up at him with her head still in his lap, his hand still in her hair.

"I don't… well, I want to know why? Why were you so willing to go after a dead woman instead of staying with me? Especially after every thing I went through to stay with you." As the words flowed softly from her mouth she watched as his gaze moved from her eyes to the scar that lay just above her heart. She then felt his hand that had been resting on her waist move up her shirt, she almost forgot how to breathe as his fingers slowly undid the top button of the already v-neck red blouse and pulled it open to reveal the very mark he himself had left upon her in a fit of rage after waking up from then from the newest of the many nightmares that haunted him.

Logan looked at the evidence that made the Wolverine inside of him scream mine, and then with two fingers he traced the line that seemed to be a little longer than three inches long. It looked just as he remembered it. "I didn't want to lose you… but something inside me… something I hadn't felt in a long time was pulling at me… so even though a part of me wanted to stay… I couldn't turn my back on Jean…. not after I was the one who ultimately took her life…" he somewhat confessed as his fingers still grazed over the spot of her perfect skin he had marred, in a daze thinking it was Jean who had come back to kill Marie as punishment for Logan taking her life and her future from her.

"You know… I honestly thought that… that it was so you could…?" She asked as her own hand found it's way to his, interlacing her finger with his.

"So I could be with her… you know Kid, there isn't anything that really scares me… but seeing you like that… laying on our bed bleeding… knowing that I was the one… all because of some nightmare that I..." Logan paused for a moment to clear his throat, feeling his chest tighten as he saw a flash of her there in his arms begging and bleeding. "It terrified me… to know that I could do that you… I couldn't risk it again… I didn't want to hurt you… so I left… I had to put her to rest… find some kind of peace... and if I couldn't… then I had to put as much distance as I could between the two of us so that I could never hurt you again. Once was enough… but twice was unacceptable."

"So now that your back did you finally find that peace you were looking for or are you just passing through?" She asked lifting her gaze from watching her hand hold his as he traced her scar, to lock her eyes with his.

"Do you remember what I told you the night I left?" he asked holding her eyes with his as he moved his hand that was brushing through her hair to stroke her cheek. "It was true… all of it… it didn't take too long for me to figure out that the only other thing that scared me worse than hurting you… was not being able to love you…I fought it, though… for as long as I could… but I knew I had to try… not only for Jean, but for us… then the night she finally… all I wanted to do was run home and hold you… and when we got there you were gone…" Logan told her with a low husky voice, his face growing ever closer to hers. "I know demanding to wheels to see you was selfish but I had to be near you… I had to hold you again… I needed to…" then he voice was silenced as her lips touched his, so softly at first then quickly turning into a kiss of heated passion.

Marie wasn't sure if he had been the one to kiss her or if it was the other way around, but at the moment, she didn't care. All the knew was how wonderful it felt to feel something besides the pain, even if it was just for a brief time. She couldn't help but enjoy the way he was making her body feel. Everything was forgotten in that moment except the blood boiling kiss he was giving her. She had known Logan would feel this amazing. His head lifted slowly and all she could do was gaze into those remarkable hazel eyes of his. She had wished for this so many times in the years after he had just left her, and even though apart of her still wanted Logan, she was yearning for a man with a pair of blue eyes that could see straight into her soul. He bent his head down towards hers again, and she closed her eyes as she awaited his lips to touch hers, only to feel his lips brush against her ear as he whispered the words she would never forget, the words that changed her world.

"I can't explain it… I know you deserve better than me but I can't help it… Marie, what you mean to me that will never change… but… I can't… be with you, not now. You're not ready… I know you love me… I just also need to know for sure that when you look at me it's only me you see… when you fall asleep at night in my arms it's me your dreaming of… I won't be his replacement."

It was taking everything Logan had inside of him to not pin her to the bed and continue what had been started. She was truly a vision, this girl with platinum streaks in her auburn hair, he thought looking into her eyes that were filled with a mixture of sadness and passion. Then there was her face, so full of life, so innocent, so fragile like that of a china doll. And that's how he vowed to treat her from now on, with the gentlest of hands and greatest loving care. He was not going to let her crack or break any more then she already had. "It's gettin late darlin'. Why don't you get some rest?" He offered her an easy escape and rested his hand once again in her hair and then gently guided her head back to lay on his chest.

Marie was in somewhat of a daze. He loved her, he had pretty much just said so for the second time today. Not only did he just tell her he had returned the feelings that she had long ago felt for him, maybe even still felt for him, this was Logan after all, but he had just showed her how much he cared by not letting her walk into something she wasn't ready for. She fixed her eyes on him and then without warning, she placed a soft kiss on his cheek. "Thank you Logan," was all she could say, now more confused about her feelings than before. Was it possible she still loved Logan somehow? She was just so tired, she could figure this all out tomorrow, yeah maybe tomorrow she will be able to figure out the mess inside that she called her feelings.

_"No problem kid… take your time, cause I am not going any where… at least not without you by my side that is,"_ he thought as he lay down beside her trying to calm his nerves, which were still in an uproar after having tasted her lips with his.


	12. Truth In Pieces

**Chapter 12 – Truth In Pieces**

When the time came for them to head back to the compound, Marie had found Scott already waiting in the cab for her. There was nothing but distance between the two, no words, no glances. It was as if the two of them were complete strangers who just happened to be sharing the same cab, loading on the same private plane, and then staying in the same house.

It went on this way for the next two weeks. Scott worked an extra shift in the evening and on weekends so that the only time he was home was from one to five in the morning, and even then he had been sleeping down stairs on the couch, leaving Marie the bedroom upstairs to herself. Well, at least to her knowledge she had the room to herself anyways. In fact, more than a few of those nights since arriving home, Scott had made his way up the stairs to get a change of clothes only to end up sitting at the foot of the bed and watching her sleep, as his mind replayed every mistake he had made since the night the professor had called with the news of Jean and Logan's return. He had honestly never thought it would end this way between them with no words of love or caring, no well wishes for each other's future, no good-byes. It had all just ended and in an instant it was over. The one constant through all of this for Scott was how wrong it all felt from Jean showing up alive again and how he handled the situation, to how the world could just carry on without noticing something as unbelievably astonishing as what he and Marie shared had just died.

For Marie, the house she had come to call home had quickly become her prison. She spent her days cleaning and avoiding the questioning Gabby and Jenna, and was haunted by the memories of the life that she and Scott had once had only weeks ago through the night. Her life was tumbling down around her faster than she could pick up the pieces and with each piece that fell, her heart broke a little more. She became further lost in the darkness that now seemed to be all around her, and lost a bit more faith in the love that was nearing insanity. Yet still with each memory she held, the way he smiled, how he always brushed back her stray hairs, the small kisses he used to place on her shoulder whenever the were bare, how safe she felt wrapped in his arms, she knew without a doubt no matter the mistakes he had made present past or future she would love him till the end of time.

And so their life went day in and day out, but today was different. Scott had been at work when his commanding officer informed him that he had been giving orders to terminate Scott's time and duties here at the compound, and that he had twenty-four hours to pack before he and his wife would be sent home on the next jet out to Washington D.C. It came as no surprise since he, Xavier and Hank had all concluded that these people were really no threat to mutants, humans or the harmony between the two. The group, quite frankly, for lack of better words, was all talk and no show.

Scott walked into the house around four that evening to find Marie sitting at the dinning room table with her back to him and her head in her hands. She was crying, sure it was faint, but he could hear it as if it were the only sound in the world, and it tore another hole of guilt in his heart. She was wiping at her eyes in an effort to try and hide it, since he had obviously surprised her by coming home this early. He took a step in her direction and put a hand out to reach for her when he abruptly stopped himself and let his hand fall back to his side. If she wanted his comfort she would ask for it, besides, after the way he had betrayed her, he didn't have the right anymore. Slowly he turned and made his way to the stairs calling over his shoulder to her with out looking back "Orders came in today. We're done here. We leave in 16 hours."

Bowing her head as tears once again began to sting her eyes, Marie absorbed not only the words he had said but the sound of his voice. In two weeks, this was the first time she had heard his voice and it had been to tell her to pack up because it was over, whether she wanted it to be or not. With that she stood and walked up stairs to start packing. She wasn't in much of a hurry or worried about the baby and heavy lifting since all that really had to be packed were clothes, a few pictures, and couple of kick knacks here and there. At most it would take maybe four to five hours, but that was if only one person was doing it all.

The first place she decided to pack was the bathroom since it was really the only contents of the house that would actually go in a box. As she was doing so, thoughts of the baby she carried flooded her mind. She still hadn't told him and quite frankly, with how the both of them had handled everything thus far, she wasn't sure she wanted to. But if she was, now would be the best time, since it would most likely be the last time she and Scott would be completely alone together.

Taking a deep breath Marie finished packing the few things left in the box and turned to stare at the door. He was in the bedroom, that much she was sure of. He had been doing some packing of his own, so all she had to do was just step out that door and say it. In reality, that was it, a couple of steps and two small words and everything would be out in the open. But if she did that she wanted him to want this baby as much as she did, to be happy about becoming a father, to have him say that he wanted them to be a family. So even though in reality all she had to do was take a few steps and say the words, it was much more complicated than that when she knew that his reaction to the news would be nothing like she wanted. None the less, he had the right to know, and with that Marie gathered all the courage she had and walked out of the bathroom to confess the secret she had been holding for almost three weeks now. Closing the door behind her Marie leaned against it for support as she looked at her husband sitting on the bed holding his head in his hands and just as she was about to speak he looked at her and spoke again for the second time that day.

"Did you sleep with him?" The words just fell out of his mouth as he heard her come out of the bathroom door and into their bedroom. He knew it shouldn't matter whether or not she had slept with Logan, he knew that he shouldn't care what she did or with who she did it with while they had been on the little "vacation" in New York City, especially after the time he and Jean had spent together. Yet, it had been one of the few things he had been constantly thinking of the last two weeks since they had gotten back to their home at the compound. He had been living in hell this whole time not knowing what had happened between Marie and Logan behind the closed door. Still, he had tried to convince himself that it didn't matter, but he had been unsuccessful, ultimately because it did matter, it mattered a lot.

Marie slumped a little more against the door and bowed her head at the question, all thoughts of their child leaving her mind. As much as she didn't want to, she knew that this conversation was unavoidable once they had gotten back home, and even though it had taken two weeks of them ignoring each other and walking on eggshells for it to happen, she still wasn't sure if she had the strength to have it now. With everything considered, though, she really didn't want to drag it out any longer, two weeks of silent torture had been more than enough. With a sigh she decided to make this as quick and painless as possible before she spoke.

"Lets go straight to the point here, just get to what this is really about ok… you want a way out of this mess as much as I do, right… go ahead Scott….admit it… you want her… you want out of this marriage and now that this mission is over you can go back to be with Jean." Marie said as her heart shattered in to tiny pieces, and then looking down at her hands that wouldn't stop shaking, she knew there really was no turning back now.

"So… I guess this is the part I should say no problem… I really hope the two of you are happy together… oh and hey good job, this was a great assignment, mission accomplished. It's been a pleasure working with you Mr. Summers… And please don't worry about me, your wife… because as soon as we get home we can get that divorce and everything will just be as right as rain." With that she brushed her tear streaked cheeks with the back of her hands before pushing some of her lose hair behind her ear and moved to the closet in search of her suitcase which she had every intention of packing. The sooner she got out of this place, out of this fantasy of a life she and Scott had built for themselves, the better off she would be.

"Oh no… No, there is no way in hell I am going to let you make this all about Jean…" He almost yelled as he stood up off the bed and then stormed over to where she was, taking her by her arm and turning her to where she had to face him and answer the question that now had him nearing insanity. "Just tell me the truth, Marie. I mean really it's a pretty simple damn question. Did you let the son of a bitch put his fucking hands on you or not?"

"You know what…. I can't… I'm not doing this. You have no right…" she said as she pulled away from him trying to make her way past him to the door on the other side of the room, only to have him stop her once again by grabbing the same arm.

"No right? I have every fucking right, you're my wife," he stated in a matter of fact tone. stepping in front of her so that they were face to face.

"Really, is that what you told Jean? Is that what the two of you talked about after you finished fucking her on the balcony? Or were you saving it as a surprise announcement for when we got back to the mansion? No… Yeah I didn't think so, because from where I was standing in the living room that day you had already made your decision and it damn sure wasn't me." Marie didn't know where the sudden anger had arisen from to force such hateful words out past her lips, even if she didn't regret saying them she knew they were only adding fire to an already well lit flame. God this all hurt so much, why was he doing this? Why, when all he was going to do in the end was go back to his sweet and cherished Jean. And yeah, maybe she hadn't slept with Logan, but that was Scott's fault too as far as she was concerned. She had every right to let him believe other wise so that maybe just maybe he could feel some of the pain he had given her when she had walked up on him and Jean. What was worse was that she had wanted to sleep with Logan, and she knew the same as Logan had known that she would have only been using him to try and forget. Forget where Scott was, forget who he was with, forget the fact that he was putting his hands on that very person the way he had her. But most of all, to forget the fact that she had hopelessly fallen in love with him sometime in the past two years that they had been together on this mission. So fuck Scott and his sudden interest in her sex life, he can suffer right along with her.

Scott's chest tightened with pain and he hung his head as the tears of hurt and anger started to glaze his bright blue eyes over when the realization hit him that he had his answer. She was avoiding the question, and he knew his wife better than anyone else. She had always hated giving people an answer when she knew it was one they didn't really want to hear.

"You did, didn't you….. you fucked him," he said in a calm voice, as the storm was building and raging inside as he waiting, holding on to the smallest hope that she would deny the statement. His jaw twitched and his hands rolled into fists, his knuckles almost immediately turning white as he started seeing flashes of the two of them together. One after another, images of his Marie, his wife and Logan flooded his mind, her calling out Logan's name, her running her hands through Logan's hair, her lips kissing Logan's, her legs wrapped around Logan's…

"SON OF A BICTH" he yelled finally erupting in anger as he grabbed the nearest thing to him and threw it across the room. It wasn't until it had shattered against the wall that he saw it had been a picture of them, the snapshot Gabby had taken the night they had all went out and celebrated their first anniversary and they had gotten caught in the rain, he'd had it blown up and framed; Then he'd given it to Marie as an anniversary gift that had been the night they had…. He felt as if he was going to go mad. Even in all the time that Logan had come between him and Jean, his making passes, touching her, even kissing her, he had never been this effected by it. He swallowed hard and then ran both of his hands over his face and then threw his hair as he started making his way to the door.

"I don't see why it matters?" Marie asked rather than stated in a broken voice as tears streamed down her already soaked face as she instantly regretted the intentional pain now evident in his blue eyes that she was the cause of.

"I guess it doesn't," Scott said as he paused and stood at the door with his hand sitting on the knob. "At least not anymore," he finally finished as he walked out the room slamming the door behind him, leaving Marie in a broken mess the same way he had left the picture of them together on the floor.


	13. What I've Done

**Chapter 13 – What I've Done**

It was already midnight; he and Marie had been back at the mansion for a little over three weeks now. Jean had automatically assumed her place by Scott's side and had even moved her things into his new room before he and Marie had returned. Jean also knew now about his relationship with Marie, and even thought she didn't know the details of it she knew it had existed, that it had been more than just some mission which was enough to bring a hurt and worry to her eyes that Scott had never wanted to be the cause of. She had moved backed into Scott's life without a second thought, and although Scott loved having her back he was finding it harder and harder to walk into their room and see Jean standing in the bathroom brushing her hair instead of Marie sitting at the desk with nothing but one of his button up shirts and a smile, with her hair pulled up messily in one of those clip things while she looked through papers or reading her newest book of poetry.

He fingered her ring that now hung form a chain around his neck, he had found it packed away in his bag after they had returned, it was the only real proof he had left that he and Marie had ever shared the amazing love they had. Other wise it was as if they had never existed, hell it was almost as if Marie had never existed. When they had gotten back she had moved in to the lake house on the other side of the property. She didn't come to the mansion anymore, or at least not she so the she didn't have to see him, not the he could blame her. He had seen her only twice since the night they had returned home, once was for a mere few seconds as he passed her classroom. She had been looking through some of her papers and such in order to bring herself up to speed so that she could get back to teaching and training the youngsters of the mansion. The second had been today when he bumped into her as she was walking out of the medical lab, he had been looking of some papers he was suppose to be giving to Hank and had walked right in to her causing them to stumble. He grabbed for her to keep them from falling not really noticing who it was he had so carelessly just tried to plow over. "I'm sorry I…" he looked up at his victim that was now in his arms, and let go of her immediately. It was her, the one person he had been trying not to think about for weeks now. Their eyes meet, then hearing Hank saying hello from the other end of the room, not knowing what to say he had simply turned his back to her and walked away.

Now more than ever he wished he had said something, anything. He wanted so badly to talk to her now, to just be able to look at her for awhile and make sure she was ok. But he couldn't, he knew it would hurt Jean too much to know that he was with her, not to mention Logan was never more than two feet away from her, not that he was scared of Logan by any means. No, the only thing Scott was afraid of when it came to Logan was how much Scott wanted to kill him. And oh how he wanted to kill him, knowing that Logan had been staying with Marie in the small one bedroom cabin on the other side of the lake for the past three weeks had sent his feelings for the man to a level of hate Scott didn't think was possible for anyone, much less someone who was always as in control as he was.

God he missed her. Scott looked at the lake in the distance, disputing whether or not he should just give in and go to her. He needed to talk to her, that much he knew, he just didn't know where he would begin, or if she would even listen to him. How do you tell someone that you're sorry for not being able to love only them, for leaving like everyone else in their life has, and even if she did come back, how would they deal with Jean and Logan being in their lives. How could they be together, when it would still come down to breaking either her or Jeans heart. Sure he loved her more than his own life, but once again life was proving to him that love wasn't enough, he felt he owed Jean more some how because he had loved her first, longer, and he knew if she had never "died" he would have never even glanced twice at Marie, much less fallen in love with her. Yet to think of a life without her now…without Marie… his eyes started to sting from the tears that now filled them.

He looked at the ring he still held in his fingers again, as memories flashed through his mind, the way she smiled when he brushed the side of her face with his finger, the light that shined through her eyes when she laughed, how her hair would fall around her shoulders when she took it down, and then today when he had ran into her. She had looked gorgeous, but the smile, the laugher, the light were all gone, and he had been the one to help make it disappear. He finally stood and decided it was better not to hurt her any more than he already had, with that he walked back in the mansion.

It was near one in the morning when Scott walked in his room hoping that Jean was already asleep, to his surprise and luck she was, he sat down at his desk as his mind became flooded once again by thoughts of his encounter with Marie today. She had still looked lovely. Her hair had been pulled back in a loose up do with strands falling around her face, dressed in a pair of blue jeans and a white tank top she seemed to have this glow around her that had made her all the more lovely. He stood again trying to shake the thoughts of Marie away, he took off his shirt, opened the closet to put it in the laundry basket, and he could smell her. Her favorite denim jacket she had worn that winter was hanging there, it had gotten mixed up in his things and Jean had hung it up so that she wouldn't forget to give it back to her. He pulled it off the hanger and breathed the scent of her in, his eyes filling with tears, pain, and anger. Flashes of the night her silence had confirmed that she had slept with that animal replayed in his mind and he threw the jacket in the closet floor and slammed the door shut forgetting Jean sleeping in the bed. He heard her sit up and rolled his eyes not really wanting to do anything but block out his memories, but he sensed her in his thoughts and knew the talk he had been avoiding with Jean about him and Marie was finally going to happen.

Jean ran her fingers through her red hair as she looked at Scott, she didn't know exactly how involved Scott and Rogue had been, or why she would even want to know, but it was killing her to see him continue to hurt like this. And to keep ignoring this situation was only going to make things worse for them. They needed to talk about it; he needed to talk about it so that he could finally put Rogue and their dissolving marriage behind him. But then again she really didn't know much about Scott at all these days. After he come back and Rogue had legally filed for their divorce, Scott had shut down as he usually did when he was hurting, but this time it was different, because he was shutting her out too, something he had never done before. It was almost as if the Scott she and everyone else knew was non existent, he got up, went to work, then would poor himself in bed around one or two in the morning only to go sleep and to the same thing over again. Hell, he wasn't even talking to Charles, which had been really upsetting him lately. Scott was a big boy and Jean couldn't tell him how to live his life, but that didn't mean she couldn't talk to him about it. "Scott… you know I…" started only to be cut off.

"Jean, look I am really tried, I just want to go to bed. Can we talk about this some other time?" Scott said as more of an order than a request, as he slipped off his jeans and walked over to the bed and laid down, not getting under the covers feeling too restricted already by having to sleep in his boxers. That was something else that Marie had changed about him, he had become unbelievably used to sleeping in the nude, something he would have never done before her.

"No, no Scott, we can't… we are going to talk about this… and we are going to talk about it now. I am sick and tried of waiting for you to come to me to about it… you and Rogue… look I'm not asking for all the dirty little details ok… I just… I need to know…if you… do you…" Jean couldn't bring herself to ask the only question that might possible destroy her future with the man she loved. Because she knew if he told her that he had somehow fallen in love Rogue, if he said those words to her out loud, she couldn't continue on like this with him. Especially if she knew the real reason he was still here with her was simply out of some kind of duty.

That's when the shinny glint of the ring hanging on his necklace caught her eye, she guessed whose ring it was attached to when she first saw it there, and the professor had confirmed her suspicions when she went to him upset asking why Scott never took it off. It's was Rogue's, Scott had given it to her on their first year anniversary.

"Scott… if you're wearing that to punish yourself for what happened between you and Rogue, you have to stop... Rogue is a young beautiful girl she will have no problem finding someone else and moving on…as a matter of fact I believe she and Logan have already found their way back together. Beside I am sure she wouldn't want you to cause yourself any more grief than you already have." She said trying to will herself to believe the statement she had just made, she wanted to believe that he was worried about the pain he caused her, not that he was wearing it because he didn't want to let her go. Slowly she reached out her hand to touch his shoulder which caused him to tense up immediately but it didn't sway her advances as she then ran her finger down his back. She wanted to touch him to hold him the way she used to. To have him touch and hold her the way he used to, but he had been so distant since she had come home that they still haven't made love, not since the time they had spent at the hotel in New York City, but she was about to change that. She thought as she scooted across the bed to meld the front of her body to the back of his, while laying her soft lips on the curve of his neck. " I love you so much… I am tired of seeing you hurting like this." She whispered in his ear in between her light kisses, wanting to ease his pain and make him forget that a woman named Rogue was ever apart of his life.

She was wrong so very wrong, true he was torturing himself but it wasn't with what he had done, it was with what he had lost. Even now, feeling Jean against him, he felt as if knew that if he took this step there would be no turning back, Marie would be lost to him forever. He felt himself starting to react to Jeans caresses and looked down at the ring that he had put on Maries finger, it was all he had left of her. Then he felt Jeans hands moving along his neck and his hands clenched tight as the chain around his neck was undone and lifted off his chest to the nightstand beside him. He took in deep breath when he felt Jean then straddle him across his hips, and he forced himself to open his eyes and look at her. He tried to make himself feel what he had once felt when he had made love to Jean, he had enjoyed her writhing above him, calling his name but he couldn't bring himself to say hers.

After he laid there thinking about how many times he had dreamed of this, to have her above him looking down at him with nothing but love in her eyes, to make love to her like he had just done. However it still didn't feel right, even with his knowledge and the pending paperwork as proof that his marriage to Marie was soon to be over, something had been missing. And he knew what it was, it was big brown doe eyes, smooth velvet white and auburn hair, and a soft southern accent to his name, but it was to late now. Just like Marie had said to him, he had made his choice, it didn't matter now that he had realized that it was the wrong choice, it was done. They had both made theirs, and to Jean he had just committed himself to her once again so there was no way he couldn't leave her now, not after all she had been through. And as much as the knowledge hurt him, she was right about Marie, hell she was probably laying in Logan's arms right now, never knowing that she still held his heart and all of his love.

He still loved her, she knew that without a doubt now, but for some reason he had just promised him self to her. She should let him go, let him go back to the woman he loves. She should, but she couldn't. Jean looked up at the face of the man she so dearly loved, she couldn't live without him, and as for Rogue, hell she had Logan. But Jean knew that she couldn't survive with out Scott, there was no way she could ever let him go. Sure she had lost his love, but with time, with time and patience, she could win that love back. She could… she would make him love her again… she had too… there was simply no other option in her mind.


	14. Nothings Black and White

**Chapter 14 – Nothings Black And White**

"Hey, Logan is Marie here… You did tell her I was coming to visit with her today right?" Kitty asked the big grumpy looking bear in front of her. How Marie got so lucky as to be married to household hunk Scott Summers one day, and then be living with the embodiment of sexual fantasies Logan the next, she would never understand.

And although she knew her best friend's heart had been broken and surely didn't see it the way Kitty did, she couldn't help herself in feeling just the teeny tiniest bit jealous. After all, not only had she had Logan and Scott, but she had also had her husband at one point in time, not that she would ever hold that against her after all she had done for them.

"Sorry, I didn't remember to tell her, but she's out back on the porch," he told the small mouse-like girl. How on earth Marie could have such a friendship with her ex-boyfriend and his wife was beyond Logan. But that was just the type of person his Marie was, and besides, the two had never failed to be there for her so they couldn't be all that bad. The girl had only visited them three other times in the five weeks they had lived here in the cabin and already he was thankful for her presence, since every time she came she left Marie in good sprits and with a smile on her face.

Kitty walked past the door block that called himself Wolverine and made her way to the back porch the find Rogue sitting in her usual spot overlooking the lake. She had no idea what was up with the connection both Rogue and her wild man shared with nature. They both preferred to be outside rather than in where as Kitty, on the other hand, couldn't stand to sweat in the heat of the summer or freeze in the cold of the winter. She could always be found in the comfort of the inside with the AC roaring cold or the heater full blast. However, with it being the end of September, the weather wasn't too bad, so she guessed it wouldn't hurt for her to sit outside this visit, she decided as she took a seat on the porch swing next to Rogue.

"Hey sweetie… how you been? Has the big bad wolf been keeping you busy with any…? I don't know… maybe… physical activities? Because you know if I was interrupting something I can always come back later," Kitty said with her trademark smile and wink of her eye.

"Good one. Cute, very cute," Marie said not being able to hold back a smile. She loved the girl sitting next to her and no matter what the situation, Kitty always knew just the right thing to say to make her smile. She looked at Kitty who was now 6 months pregnant and her hand unknowingly even to her own hand fell to her abdomen where she and Scott's child grew with each passing day. Since she had gotten back the only other person she had informed of her impending motherhood had been Hank. She had almost had a heart attack the first time she had went to see him a couple of weeks ago and had quite literally run into Scott on her way out. She just finished up with the sonogram Hank had given her informing the both of them that she was in her 14th week of pregnancy, and that both she and the baby in prefect health. Then as she made her way out the sliding doors she had been too busy looking at the small picture of her child to even notice that Scott had been coming straight at her.

"Hello, earth to Rogue, are you listening to me…" Kitty said waving a hand in front of her friend's face, pretty sure that she hadn't heard a word she just said. Sighing at Rogue's automatic apology, she knew she was going to have to start her spiel over again. "Ok, well now that I have your attention I guess I will just cut straight to the question I want to know."

"Which is?" Marie inquired now lost and confused, which wasn't all too uncommon in her conversations with Kitty.

"Are you two sleeping together yet?" Kitty asked without a moment's hesitation.

"Excuse Me?" Marie stated, questioning Kitty sanity now, while she turned sideways in the swing to face her friend and look her in the eyes so that she could make sure she wasn't joking. And to her surprise, she found that Kitty was quite serious.

"You heard me. Are you and Logan an item, yet? Exclusive or whatever?" She couldn't hint around the subject any longer. Fact of the matter was, that Jean had made it very apparent the she and Scott were on more than friendly speaking terms the last few weeks, giving him small touches and kisses to just about everyone present, and she knew that the news would devastate her already coping friend. Rogue had already been through so much, Kitty just wanted for her friend to be happy, and as far as she was concerned, the Wolf Man was the cure. And even if he wasn't the cure to her happiness, it would at the very least give her a very nice distraction from Scott and his whore. Ok, so maybe Jean wasn't a whore but she was kind of acting like one lately and she wasn't the only one who thought so.

"Hey don't look at me like I just asked you to sleep with me, you know I'm married. Plus, being 6 months pregnant and felling like a hot air balloon, sex isn't exactly the top thing on your mind. And don't go getting pissy with me either Ms. Thing; at least hear me out before you decide to tell Mr. Grumpy in there off with her head. I know that it hasn't been all that long since you and Scott split, but I also know how much you care for that big ass inside. I just… I just want you to be happy, the way Bobby and I are, and I have seen the way he looks at you since you've been back. Not to mention the fact that he never leaves your side unless it's something important. You know… I think, I think you have another chance at real love here, Hon, and I hate to see you throw it away because dickhead broke your heart. Then again, if it's none of my business just tell me so and I won't say a thing."

"It's a bit late for that Kitty, don't you think." Marie replied with a smile, as she stood up and walked over to the railing, leaning over to rest on her fore arms as she looked out at the nature around her all the while having Kitty's words replaying over in her head. Sighing she turned to look at Kitty still sitting were she had left her. "I understand that you are worried about me, and even if your solutions to my… problems are a little off the wall, I appreciate you wanting to help… and if I knew that… I don't know Kitty… I do care a lot for Logan, I really do, it's just that when I was with Scott…" Marie began but was cut off short.

"Scott… god, you know what … I didn't want to say anything, but I, as your friend, even if it is going to hurt you, I feel you are in need of a severe wake up call. Scott is with Jean, and by the way when I say with Jean I do mean with Jean. Baby, there is no more you and Scott, there hasn't been in more than two months now. And I know you are hurt it's just that… you deserve better… and maybe Logan is it," Kitty explained, now standing beside Rogue with a pleading look on her face, hoping she was getting through.

"It's not that simple Kitty," Marie said with a deep sadness in her voice hearing yet again what she already knew.

"You miss him, I get that, maybe you always will, and maybe nothing will ever make that go away. But he's moved on babe, and it wouldn't kill you to let your self be happy, to let yourself move on to someone else who I know loves you more than either he or you will ever admit," Kitty pleaded with Rogue to let go of the pain she seemed to be holding on to.

"Kit… I'm… I'm pregnant," Rogue confessed as and she broke into tears.

"What... You mean…. with… Oh my god, Rogue. I had no idea. I mean I noticed you were putting on a little weight but that's not something you just come out and say to your friend, you know. Hey, how you doing? By the way, you're getting fat," Kitty replied as she circled her arms around her best friend. "How could that bastard do this knowing you're carrying his child? That son of a …."

"He doesn't know. I never told him… and you can't either," Marie pleaded with her friend through her tears. With a shaky breath and a unsteady hand wiping away at her tears for what must have been the millionth time in the past four months, Marie turned and looked Kitty dead in her eyes. "He can't know Kitty. He made his choice, and it was Jean; which leaves no room in his life for me or an unwanted child."

"So what happens when you really start showing huh, and trust me honey it just happens now it's not so bad, hardly noticeable but the next thing you know instant blimp. You can't just go around telling everyone for the next few months that you've put on a few pounds?" Kitty asked sarcastically, filled with anger at Scott for choosing Jean, at Marie for hiding the information from him when he had every right to know, and at fate for putting her friend through the whole damn situation.

"I don't know… I was thinking about maybe asking Logan if..." Marie said turning away from her friend as her vision became blurred with a fresh stream of teams.

"Wait a minute… Logan knows… you told Logan before you told me?" Kitty asked truly and utterly surprised by the news.

"I didn't tell Kit, he heard the baby's heartbeat…when we met up in New York... I had only found out a few days before that, and I had planned on telling Scott the night we got the call from the Professor… I had it all planned, we went out and we got home I went up stairs and wrote Hi Daddy down on a little piece of paper… and when I came down… After that call, everything changed so fast. Scott and I fell apart in a matter of a few hours; everything we had, everything we were… it was just gone."

Marie spilled out her emotion that she had been holding for more than three months to her friend as she relived the shocking news of Jeans return, the hateful words she and Scott had exchanged, the moment she had slipped her ring off her finger and packed it away with Scott's things instead of her own.

"So Logan knows and he's still here by your side knowing that you're going to have Scott's child. Wow… now I know the man is in love with you," Kitty joked, doing her best to try and lighten the mood, smiling a bit when she heard Rogue laugh a little through the sobs. Things were getting emotional entirely too fast and that wasn't good for Rogue and her baby or Kitty's and her own.

"Yeah, yeah he does love me and this baby. Logan has been… a godsend to me through all of this; which is why I was thinking of asking him if he would mind… mind if maybe I told everyone that he's the father," Marie said softly not knowing what kind of reaction she was going to receive from her friend.

"You sure that's what you want?" Logan spoke as he set the glasses of Lemonade on a side table next to one of the chairs by the door. He hadn't meant to overhear their conversation, but he had come to learn a little bit about pregnant women since living with one for the past couple of months. And the three things he knew for sure were, they went to the bathroom at least 5 times a day, it was never just "morning" sickness, and they always could use something to drink.

"Logan…" she started in surprise. She had planned to talk about this with him a number of times but had always chickened out in the end. In truth, her hesitation in coming to Logan with her idea of telling everyone he was the father, was the same reasons she hadn't told Scott the about the baby. She was just flat out scared of his reaction; what if he wouldn't do it, what if he didn't want the responsibility, what if he could never see Scott's child as his own?

"Wow… Oh boy do I have to go pee. Yeah, be right back," Kitty blurted out before she made a fast exit into the house feeling a suddenly uncomfortable and out of place.

"Logan… I…" Marie fumbled with her words. There was no way out of this one, but at least he knew now and she no longer had to play out the "what if" scenarios in her head.

"Don't say anything, just let me… Look if this is what you want then you should know by now I would give anything to be that kid's father," Logan confessed easily as he made his way to stand in front of her. This was it, everything he wanted being offered to him on a silver platter, all he had to do was take it. Still, he wouldn't do it at the expense of Marie's happiness. "There's just one problem Marie… I know you and I'm not so sure you could live with a lie like that, I think with time it would tear you up inside. And your happiness is not something I am willing to sacrifice just to get Scooter out of the picture. I just want you to think about it… ok." He finished as he wrapped his arms around her.

"What would I do without you?" Marie asked with her face buried in his chest. Everything always felt better when she was in Logan's arms, so why couldn't she just love him the way she had before. It would defiantly make a lot of things easier in her life.

"You don't ever have to worry about that darlin', because it isn't ever going to happen," Logan replied as his fingers ran through her hair down her back as he breathed in the sweet scent of her.

"Ahhh… that's so sweet." Kitty said with tear in her eyes as her hormones kicked in.


	15. Only Thing That's Right

**Chapter 15 – Only Thing That's Right**

From the moment Marie had woken that morning she could feel it coming, something bad was going to happen. She didn't know how she had the knowledge of her impending doom and the moment she answered the phone a few hours later she wished that the feeling she had awaken with had been wrong. As of today she and Scott would no longer be married, the divorce papers had arrived. It had been the reason for the phone call. The professor had informed her that he was waiting for her and Scott in his office so that they could resolve the final matter of signing them.

So here they sat there, Marie on one side of the table and Scott directly across from her on the other. The room in silence as they each held a pen in hand, the paper sitting in the middle of the table between them. It was the first time since they had left the compound that they had really been alone with one another.

Scott was beyond upset; way past pissed off, and completely crushed. This was all just to much the only women he wanted was sitting directly across from him no more that a few of feet away, and between them set a handful of papers that would forever wipe away any future with her. Sitting here in this moment looking at her with her eyes focused on her hands as she fumbled her pen around with her fingers, she was his, she was still his wife. But the moment they put their names on that paper they would be come just simple memories, past tense. Finally his emotions getting the better of him, which always seemed to be the case where Marie was concerned Scott broke the silence.

"You know… I …" Scott started to say wanting nothing more than to tell her how wrong all of this felt, that he wanted her back, that the life and happiness they had together was all he dreamed about at night, that he still loved her. Yet he knew that even if he could by some miracle find the words to make it up to Marie for the ass he had been he still had Jean to consider who had quite literally been through hell and back. She had just gotten her life back together and was finally smiling again; she didn't deserve him leaving her now when she needed him the most. He owed her that much even if he was in love with the woman sitting across from him. Looking up Scott realized Marie had been waiting for him to speak, shaking his head clear of his thoughts he finally did, though it was no where near what he truly wanted to say. "Let's just get this over with, and since you were the one who filed for the damn divorce you can have to pleasure of signing the papers first."

"Is this how things are going to be between us from now on?" Marie questioned him in a sadden voice that was barely heard by her own ears. Unable to raise her eyes to meet his as they started to fill with tears when the reality of what she and Scott had become to each other hit her with a full force.

"You tell me Rogue… I mean really there's not exactly a whole lot left for us to talk about. You made it very clear you wanted out of this marriage in New York. You defiantly wasted no time in filing for divorce as soon as we got back and if you think for a second that I would want to sit and chit chat about you and Logan…"

"I'm pregnant." She blurted out her voice just above a whisper in the middle of his rant surprise not only Scott but herself into dead silence.

Scott breath was caught in his throat right along side his heart. He had heard her words loud and clear but he just couldn't seem to process them. She was…. " Your what?" he asked as he closed his eyes shut against the instant pain and prayed that he had heard her wrong, please god let me have heard her wrong. He couldn't deal with this, there was no way he could handle watching her having that bastard's child.

"I'm pregnant." Marie said again, this time the word coming from her mouth a little easier and louder than before. She had done it, true she hadn't planned on it or even meant to, but she had finally come out with the truth all the same. All there was left to do now was waiting for his reaction. Good, bad or otherwise at least now it was all out in the open and she would no longer be plagued by the thoughts and dreams of what if he knew.

Slowly she found the strength to lift her eyes to look at him, and she almost immediately wished she hadn't. He had stood up from his seat and was now walking over to the window to looking out into the grounds, something he had always done when his was hurting and in obvious pain. She watched as his hands swept across his face and then through his hair and she slowly stood wanting nothing more than to walk over to him and place her arms around him, feel his strong arms around her.

"Well that didn't take long." Scott said more to himself as he tried to pushing away the resurfacing images of his wife and the man he that wished was dead.

"What the hell is that suppose to mean?" Marie asked intensely becoming defense.

"We were married almost two years… two years. You stay three months with that bastard while your legal still MY WIFE and you suddenly come up pregnant. How else am I supposed to react Marie?" Scott all but yelled at her losing what little control he was trying to maintain. Just when he had thought it couldn't get any worse, that he possibly couldn't hurt anymore than he did, she sent him to a whole new level of pain with only two words. Two words that if had she spoken to him only a few months earlier would have given him one the greatest joy known to man. But Logan had stolen that joy from him, just as he had taken everything else that Scott had loved.

"You son a bicth…. I can't….. I can't believe you are just going to assume that Logan is the father of this baby." Marie returned in a few heated words of her own, as she stepped around the table to stand a few feet in front of him.

"Yeah…. Well it sure a hell hasn't been me you've been sleeping with the past three months." He hadn't met to say it out loud but as the words fell out of his month he new he couldn't have hurt her more than if he had slapped her in the face.

"Well you've been so busy with Jean; I didn't really think you'd have any time to squeeze me into your schedule….. I can't even believe that you have the balls to throw me living with Logan in my face. Even if he and I were sleeping together you have no right to complain when you have been screwing Jean for months." Marie said with each of her words covered in distain. How could he do this, as if hearing all the kids and Kitty talking about Scott and Jean finally getting their long awaited happy ending together wasn't enough. Why did he have to make her remind him that he had no right throwing any stones her way for her relationship with Logan that in reality didn't even exist.

"Maybe I have been fucking her Marie but at least I didn't get Jean pregnant." Scott retorted in snide almost a child like manner that surprised even him self. Yet he couldn't seem to help himself, it hurt, everything she said hurt, not just because it reminded him of the fact that he had lost her. But because it was all true, he had cheated just as she had, he had hurt her just as she had hurt him.

"No but you sure as hell knocked me up…." The dumbfounded look Scott was giving her now was almost funny, in all the scenarios that had played out in her mind when she had told him about their baby this had never been one of them. Marie would have never thought that Scott could believe the baby to be anyone but his.

Yet she knew that this nightmare had been her own making. If she had just told Scott the truth about not sleeping with Logan before they had left the compound this conversation would not even be happening now. Add that to the fact the she had so foolishly let Logan stay with her at the cabin and she could understand how it must look from his prospective. Still that didn't mean this hurt any less. Taking a deep breath to calm herself she continued "I'm 17 weeks along, I found out I was pregnant before we even went to New York."

Before New York, she knew before New York…. Which meant the child she was carrying was…his. Marie was going to have his baby, not Logan's. The child she was going to give life to was not Logan's baby, this baby was his. He was going to be a father. Why hadn't she said so… why hadn't she just told him this was his baby to begin with… why hadn't she told him before New York?

Scott looked down as he ran a now shaky hand through his hair, before looking up at the woman he loved more than life itself, the woman who was standing in front of him carrying his child, the woman who until he signed the forgotten papers lying on the table beside them was still his wife.

"Why did you wait so long to tell me?" he questioned with a voice that betrayed just how broken he truly was.

"I was going to… that night… then the Professor called and everything… everything just happened so fast… with Jean and …. Then I couldn't…." Marie tried to explain as the tears she had been holding in started falling down her face. Turning her back to him as she tried to wipe them away and she realized there was no real excuse. She had been scared to tell him. So scared in fact she had been contemplating letting another man his child just so that she didn't have this very conversation with Scott. He had nearly lost the chance to be a father to his own child simply because she had been afraid.

"I'm sorry." She said in a near whisper as she sensed him walk up to stand behind her, all she wanted was to feel his arms around her and it was only a second later her wish came true as she felt his hands slide down her arms to intertwine their fingers as he pulled her body to press against his.

She felt like heaven in his arms and her hair where his face was now buried smelt even better. Holding her like this meant more than he could put into words and standing there with her now he never wanted it to end. He wished time could stand still so that they could live in this moment forever and not have to go back to the disaster of what he called his life for the past three months now.

God she was beautiful. Looking down at the beauty in his couldn't help but take advantage of the moment they were given. Damn the consequences, ever so lightly he placed his lips on an exposed part of her neck, only to repeat his action again little higher right below her ear, and then once more on her jaw line. Then moving one of his hands to cup the cheek of her face he loving moved her lips within the reach of his own.

When his lips met hers Marie thought she was going to crumble, in fact if Scott hadn't been holding her she just may have. He missed her, she could feel it in the way his lips moved on hers so gentle, loving and full of passion. As the heat and intensity grew Marie turn her body around to face his so that they could have better access to one another as their lips and hands tried to keep up with their rapidly building desire. One of her hands was now grasping at the back of his neck, while the other had found his waist and pulling him with her as she backed up to the wall behind her.

Once she had made contact with the wall his body pressed up against hers letting him feel the new curve of her body that was swollen with child. Scott pulled his lips from hers and looked down upon her face to make sure he hadn't hurt her or their baby. Their baby…. His and hers… just the though brought a smile on his face that he hadn't had since the night they had left for New York. As he was about to lower his lips to taste her again a knock rang through the room and in an instance their time together was over.

Hearing the knock and then the door knob turning put Marie in a panic and she quickly took a couple of steps the side putting distance between herself and a rather confused Scott. For what reason she had went into a panic she did not know, after all this was her husband and last time she checked there was nothing wrong in making out with the man whom you are married to in a enclose private room. Although she had to admit to herself after the door open and to reveal Jean she was glad that she had.

"Scott, honey we really need to go over some of the wedding details when ever you…." Jean chattered as she strolled into the office casually while looking over some of the papers she had put together on her and Scott's wedding only to look up and seemed surprised to find that he wasn't alone in the room. "Oh, I sorry am I interrupting something?"

"Not anymore." Marie said as she threw Scott a look of anger before storming out of the room. How could he stand here and kiss her senseless when he was already planning a wedding with another woman.

"Marie wait…. Marie." Scott called after her as she all but ran from the room. With a sigh Scott rubbed his forehead with his hand as he felt the beginning of a big headache coming on. Why the hell did Jean have to chose that moment to come in the room in search for him, and talking about the wedding she had decided on her own that it was finally time they had.

"Well she looked like she was ready to take your head off. I guess it's a good thing these divorce papers came when they did." Jean said as she walked over to the table, picked up the papers and started flipping through them, and coming to a dead stop when she noticed something very important was missing on them. "Scott why aren't these signed?"

"You know Jean, regardless of the fact that you and I happen to be together. Marie was and is still my wife and there is nothing you can do that will wipe our history and what we shared together away. Not that I would let you even if you could." He stated to her in a harsher tone than he had meant to before grabbing the papers from her and making his own exit. Yet he knew on some level Jean had known what she had been doing when she walked in there talking about getting married to him and that infuriated him.


	16. Before The Storm

**Chapter 16 - Before The Storm**

It had been five hours ago since he'd started dirking… five hours ago since he'd started sifting through what few memories he had that has ever meant anything to him… five hours ago since he'd seen THEM… And if he wanted the truth to be known it started before Jean died. Hell, if he really wanted to be honest with himself it started the moment she had looked into his eyes at that smoky bar. Logan had known the second he saw her in the crowed room before that last fight, that somehow, she was going to change his world. And at the time he just pushed the thoughts off as a side effect of having taken one too many blows to the head that night.

Then later on after her attempting to save his life when the man came at him with that knife… and then him attempting to return the favor by letting her ride with him in his truck. Those thoughts had flooded his mind again at the sound of her name. Only to be ripped from his mind mintues later as his truck smashed into a tree or rather when the tree slammed into his truck.

Nevertheless it did not take any longer than twenty four hours be those simple thoughts of a future with the light that was somehow brought back into his life by a young girl named Marie before they become more of a fact. Logan could even pen point the exact second he knew she had changed his world and was forever in his future, it was when he woke up in Xavier's mansion not knowing where the hell he was or what had been done to him and still the only thing reverberating through out his mind was Marie… He had to find his Marie.

Still after finding her safe and noticed a nice distraction he'd once again chosen to ignore it. Hell in the end he had pretty much ran from it, ran from her, and ran from the feelings he really couldn't comprehend, or at least didn't want to.

You see with Jean… that was easy… he was the hunter and she… well. You see he looked at it like this, Jean had just enough innocents about her that he could pass off what he was feeling for another on to a more acceptable female… a female he could… well to put it bluntly look at as prey, a challenge he would have loved nothing more than to concur and then be been done with and move on… just like he had with every other girl in his life that he could remember.

But Marie… Marie was different… every instinct Logan had inside him had told him, once he had her; he would never be able to let her go. Whither she wanted him to or not. So for both of their sake's, more his own than hers, he stayed away. She was too good; too pure inside… he knew there was nothing he could give her except for heartbreak and maybe a few more nightmare of his own for her to relive for him in the middle of the night and in the end that was exactly what he had ended up doing after he had finally given into the temptation to claim the one he had wanted for so long.

So for years he used bringing back Jean as a reason to stay and not hurt the woman had love beyond even his own comprehension and for years that reason was good enough to keep himself away from her… to keep her safe from him… Yet, still he'd come back to her; he'd done his best to make amends for all his sins where she was concerned and he'd so positive that she'd loved him back until, tonight.

When he seen that prick kissing her, putting his hands on her in places they didn't belong. Let's just say he was lucky that Jean had came up behind him and told him Ororo was asking for his help outside because Logan had been ready to kill the son of a bicth, really fucking kill him. No screwing around and playing with him first or making sure he suffered a little. Oh no it would have been an instantaneous death. Who the fuck did that bastard think he was anyways… she wasn't his girl… not this time… maybe she had been for a second but she was Logan's now, had been all along really…

Sure, maybe Logan hadn't made that fact completely clear to Marie, but he knew that son of a bicth and every other person alive of the male persuasion on this fucking plant knew who she belonged to. Marie was Logan's alone. Maybe he hadn't said the exact words, maybe it was time he did, maybe it was time to show Marie that she was his. Then after that, if that fucker put his hands or lips on her again, Logan would kill him.

**An Hour Later At The Cabin**

When Logan returned home he took a quick scan of the living room and the kitchen before he became frozen when he found himself standing in the doorway of the bedroom, she was laying in the bed, he knew that back, the way it curved, that auburn hair, and he new without a doubt that with the way her shoulders where slightly shaking as she laid there that she had cried herself to sleep.

His Marie... Did he still have the right to call her his any longer? Logan felt his chest tighten, it was hard to breathe, and he could hear his own heart beat over the soft ticking of the clock. He took a step forward and then paused again, he had dreamed of asking her to be with him again for so long and this time he was going to do more than that; Especially now that she was a free woman with her marriage to Scooter just another part of her history.

It occurred to him that she probably hadn't dreamed of him the way he had her all these months, after all Summers had been a big part of her life, and obviously he always would be with Marie caring his child. Add that with what Logan had witness earlier today, it didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that she still wasn't completely over her ex-husband, but it didn't matter because it seemed Scott found yet another way to hurt her and Logan was more than willing to pick up the pieces.

He didn't care if she still had feelings for Summer's; again, the prick was the father of her child it was only natural right, he thought as he moved toward her again. He didn't want to wake her just yet; all he wanted to do was just look at the stunning face that had haunted him since the night he had so foolishly left her. When he came to the other side of the bed it took all his self control to keep from falling to his knees and pulling her into his arms where she belonged.

He drank in the sight of her stating with her face, her beautiful chocolate eyes were now hidden behind by her eyelids, her full soft lips, her smooth neck that begged to have his lips brush against it, the ample breast he had always love to explore with his hands, mouth and tongue, the curve of her…. Logan's gaze stilled in the roundness of Marie stomach, his clenched his fists as his jaw tightened as the longing in his eyes was slowly replaced by sadness.

Sometimes it was easy to pretend that it was his…. That he was the one who had given Marie the small miracle now growing inside her. A last regardless of how much he wished, prayed or tried believe with all his heart and soul that the child was his, he knew that it was not.

True he would love that kid as he loved Marie how could he ever not love any part of her. But it tore at his heart knowing that if he had just stayed with her or maybe just come home a little sooner, Marie would be his wife and that would be his unborn child laying in her womb.

Slowly Marie's stirred her self awake only to lift her eyes open as she sat up lovingly rubbing her stomach as if to make sure the baby new everything was going to be ok, they were going to be ok. Her face, that had been stricken with hurt and sadness started to show relief as she smiled at where she safely held her baby only to turn her head so that her eyes connected with Logan's. They held each others gaze while a thousands emotions raced between the two of them.

"Logan, what's wrong?" Marie asked in confusion not quite sure why he was standing in front of her with unshed tears in his eyes, looking as if he had just been through Alcatraz war all over again and barley made it out alive.

"You ok, kid?" Logan questioned already knowing to answer.

Marie looked down at her belly, rubbing it with both her hands; she couldn't look him in the eyes it hurt too much. So with her eyes still fixed on her tummy Marie did her best to give him the answer he asked for in order to block out the obvious pain his was trying desperately to shield himself from at the moment. "Logan… I … there is such much more than you understand going on here… and honestly I don't know why you're still here with me after all these months…"

"You're not answering my question Marie. You know I'm not going any where with out you ever again. So what happened today?" his voice now soft and gentle as he took as seat beside her on the edge of the bed.

Then without really thinking his hand moved to the side of her face and lifted her eyes to meet his, and once there eyes meet he was lost in them, and all he could feel was the softness of her sink under his hand, and he couldn't bring his self to remove it from her face. Instead he traced her jaw line with his finger, and licked his lips as he then sunk the same fingers in the mass of her silkily hair to brush it back over her shoulder.

"I don't want to hurt anymore… and I knew they were together but… did you know they are already planning a wedding…" Marie couldn't finish the thought much less the statement. She had thought a lot over the last months about telling Scott about their baby and even before she had let it slip she never knew he would think that it was the "other man's", then learning that he and Jean were already planning a wedding before the were even divorced, tears fell down her cheeks now like rain, and she tried feverishly to brush them away, but with no avail.

This time it was Logan who looked down, unable to hold back any longer he moved his hand to rest on her stomach, and looked at where her child was resting inside.

"Hank thinks it's a girl but we won't find out for sure until my 20th week." Marie whispered, with a smile on her face as Logan's hand brushed her own. Logan's eyes rose to meet hers before he gave in to the need he'd had for her for so long. Not caring, not thinking about anything but having Marie in his arms at that moment he slid his hand around the back of her neck and pulled her lips to his as the hand he had on her stomach made its way behind her to her buttock's and pulled her into his lap. Then he pulled back just far enough to look her in the eyes their foreheads still pressed against one another.

"It killed me inside… to have lost you… it still is." Logan confessed as he raised one of his hands to cup the side of her face, slowly he lower his lips started to bring his lips to taste hers once again."Logan…" was all she said before closing the small space between them. The next thing she new those muscular arms she had thought of as only a memory for to long were wrapping around her, gathering her in to press close, to meld her to him until she could feel every inch of his hard frame along hers. Her body seemed to no problem reacting to his as she began to recall what it had been like to feel him this way.

He was nibbling gently at her lips when she knew for certain she didn't want to be let go, but her mind working under delayed reactions began to gather wits to protest. "Logan…." She said pulling her lips away from his, but he didn't stop kissing her. He just changed locations, her neck.

"Logan… I…" she started but ending in a soft moan when he brought her earlobe into his month to suck in it pulling away from her, his looked in to her eyes now filled with nothing but passion and desire.

"Marie if you don't…." Was all he got out before her lips came back to crush his; with a kiss so full of passion it left no question as to weather she wanted him unanswered.

Which was all the confirmation he needed, he than picked her up into his arms and laid her back into her bed. He had dreamed so many nights about having her in his arms again, and now that she was here he was having a hard time believing that she was real.

She had tried to ignore the feeling Logan had brought back with him from the moment she open the door up to see his face in New York, and when she had Scott in her life that had been easy to do. But it was time to face the facts. Which was really only one hard truth and that was expect for the child they shared together they were over. He had moved on and it was about damn time she did too regardless of how much it hurt.

Marie was also painfully aware that this relationship for her and Logan wasn't going to be easy; she knew they still had a lot of things to work out, but trying to resist something as powerful as the connection they shared was next impossible.

Marie's thinking began to blur as the pleasure Logan was creating in her body began to take over. She wanted, no needed him right now, so of course Logan would have decided that for the first time ever he was going to take his time with her, dedicated to making this best experience she has with out a doubt ever had with him.

It was almost maddening the way he was showing affection to every part of her, in particular the firm gentle curve of her belly where her child now rested, which he rubbed, kissed, and whispered "I love you." to only to left his eyes to hers and say "I love you too.", instantly renewing the tears in her eyes.

She felt his hand slid up over her breast to curve around her neck and bring her lips back to meet his, and then he was inside her, deeply buried, and her whole body seemed to sigh in relieved welcome. They had made love before but nothing compared to how soft, slow, and gentle as Logan was doing now. She cradled him, caressed him; and every shuddering spasm of pleasure she had was felt by him.

Logan smiled, she had no idea that she had once again become his world, always had been really. Just as she didn't know that he had given her his soul all over again.

When Marie reached the point of knowing anything, she felt him nibbling on her lips. Then it dawned on her and she was stricken with fear. So Soon? Did she want to lose herself like this again? Dare she? It had crushed her heart when she had lost his love the first time, she wouldn't be able to lose it again, not after her heart had suffered so much with the lost of Scott. He wanted her, he loved her that much she was sure of and she needed and loved him too… but did she love him enough for him to actually stay?

Her thoughts began to blur as the urge to do some nibbling of her own became overpowering, and that gave her the only answer she needed for the moment as she prayed that she would not end up hurting Logan or god forbid lose him again.


	17. Tied My Hands

**Chapter – 17 Tied My Hands**

Pregnant, Marie was pregnant with his child. The words just kept replaying over and over again in his head like a broken record. His impeding fatherhood and the fact that he would be holding his child in his arms in about five months time seemed to be all he could think about since he had talked to Marie yesterday morning. The idea of it all thrilled him still he could not bring his self to smile about it the way he had only yesterday.

As much as the thought of them having a child excited him the sadness of not getting to be there with Marie and the baby day in and day out tore at his heart. He was trapped between two promises. One he had made to Jean and one he had made to Marie. With Jean he still felt the need to stand beside her, after all he had loved her first, promised her his heart, body, and mind long before Marie had ever came into his life. And if Jean had never vanished he most likely would have never even looked at Marie in any other way but as someone who used to be his student.

Then there was Marie… what couldn't he say about her and the way she made him feel. She had been the one who had thought him how to live again, how to smile and laugh in a way he'd never had before, she had shown him how unexpected, crazy, and fun life could be on a daily basis. You know and then there was also the fact small fact that she still was indeed his wife and now the mother of his child.

Which brought him to his next problem, Logan; Scott knew that if he chose to stay with Jean that it would be Logan at Marie's side. It would be Logan helping her through out the uncontrollable late months of her pregnancy. It was going to be Logan who would get to be the first one to feel his child move in Marie's belly. Logan that would get to help change diapers and gives early morning feedings, and there was no way Scott wanted that to happen.

So here he stood in front of the lake house that Marie and her animal had called their home for the past three months. He really wasn't sure what he was going to say, at this point all he knew was that they had a lot to talk about.

Taking a deep breath to steady himself Scott lifted his hand only to hesitate a bit before he let it fall on the lighted door bell beside the door. Hearing the heavy footstep coming closer with every step Scott tensed and prepared himself before the door opened knowing that Logan would be the one standing on the other side not Marie.

"What the hell do you want?" Logan asked with aggravation in his voice as the last person he wanted to see stood looking at him with the same malice in his eyes.

"I'm here to see my wife." Scott stated simply as he forced himself to resist hitting the man.

"Don't you mean you ex-wife?" he tried to correct him not liking the fact that Scott had ever had to right to call Marie his wife as he crossed his arms in front of his chest.

"Funny you should mention that. You see, none of the papers where signed yesterday. So as I said before I'm here to see my wife." The fact the Marie was still his wife brought a smug smile of enjoyment to his face, and the look that Logan was wearing on his face as Scott brushed past him into the house was even better.

"Cut the bullshit, Cyclops. You and I both know why your here, and I'm telling you now. There is no way in hell I'm going to let you use this baby against her." Logan warned him as he put a finger in younger mans face.

"You know nothing about me, Marie, or our child. So you'd better…." Logan's words had hit his preverbal button and Scott turned around with a threatening voice of his own as his anger started to boil inside him.

"I wouldn't bet on that if I were you." Logan retorted with a smug smile of his own.

"Listen, you son of a bitch…" Scott said as he took a step forward only to be interrupted by the woman he was here to see.

"STOP! Things are complicated enough without the two of you playing the pissing game. Logan, please." This was the last thing she needed to deal with right now. She already had enough to sort through with what had happened between her and Logan last night.

"Fine, but I'll be out back if you need me." Logan stated as he paused by her only long enough to place a loving hand on her slightly distended stomach as he lightly kissed her temple before walking out the back door.

The sight of Logan touching not only his wife but his unborn child sent a murderous feeling coursing through his veins that up until this point Scott hadn't even know could exist in him, to say that he wanted to slaughter the bastard would have been a grave understatement. With his head bowed, eyes tightly closed shut Scott took deep breaths and just stood completely still for a moment as he tried to settle his seething anger. He hadn't walked all the way from the mansion to have yet another yelling match with Marie. He had come here to talk with her calmly about the baby, their baby.

"So, why are you here Scott? Shouldn't you be busy planning a wedding with the love of your life?" Ok, so maybe that wasn't the best way to start out this conversation, she sounded like nothing more than a wounded school girl who'd seen her crush kissing another girl, even she could admit that, but she was hurting damn-it.

"Don't." he said a little more forceful than he intended.

"Don't what Scott?" Marie demanded with a shrug of her shoulders letting her hands fall to her sides.

"I know I haven't got any right to ask this of you right now, okay. But please, Marie. Can't we just have a peaceful conversation for once. I don't want to fight anymore." Scott said as he ran a hand though his hair before he finally brought his eyes up to meet her.

Okay so maybe she needed to take a couple of breaths and regain in her anger a bit Still, looking at him standing there she could still feel his lips moving over hers, and it pissed her off. She hated herself for wanting him after every thing that has happened. Logan had been more than wonderful to her and her baby and Scott well Scott her husband was planning another wedding before he was even technically divorced. Seriously, what the hell was wrong with her.

"Look, I don't know where to start, ok. But I'm here and I'm trying. I've lost my best friend and my wife in this fucked up mess already, and I don't want to lose my child too." He confessed in a tone that was almost pleading, and maybe he was but when it came to being a part of his child's life he really didn't care.

"Scott you know I would never…" Marie started with sadness in her voice as a feeling of guilt came over her.

"Do I really? You know, there was a time not to long ago Marie that I would have sworn that our marriage wasn't just some mission, or a cover up… that what we had together was….real…You know what… it's…it doesn't matter. The point is I was wrong. I not sure of anything where you are concerned anymore."

Shaking her head a little at his words she knew this was not going to be the clam adult conversation she had hoped it could be only a few moments ago before she spoke a few words of her own. "How can you say that? How can you stand there and tell me these things and still have walked away?"

"I didn't have a choice….I had asked you to fight for us when we were in New York and you pretty much flat out refused…I thought it was what you wanted." Scott said in a strained voice as the memories of what had happened in hotel before everyone else had arrived flashed through his mind.

"What I …. What I wanted….What I wanted was to have never gone to fucking New York City, what I wanted was for the Professor to have never made that damn call. For me to have gotten to tell you about our child that night and then spend the rest of it and the next day making love to you. But you're right Scott, none of that matters now. Because it did happen, all of it happened." Marie said choking a bit on the last of her words. Whipping at what seem to be the never ending stream of tears on her face, she turned and walked back into the bedroom where she'd entered the living room from.

He entered the house almost as soon as Marie had retreated back to their room. He looked at the son of a bicth whom he knew was a threat to what he had already began to think of as his family, as he walked to the front door and swung to open.

"You can leave now. And just for future reference Wonder boy you had your chance; I not letting you take her back." Logan informed Scott.

"And here I thought we could be friends." Scott surprised himself by remarking brazenly, as he stayed put in the spot he was already in.

"I mean it Summers. I am not going to just sit by and wait until the next time you brake her heart before I can be apart of her life again. And even though I am sure it will only be a short time before you throw her out like you did the last time you got tried of her, I'm not willing to wait or watch her go through that pain all over again. My family stays with me, where they will be safe." He said with a taunt voice.

"Wait a minute; your… your family? Have you lost what little you had left of your memory? In case you've forgotten that's my wife and my child she's carrying. Hate to destroy your dream world Logan but if Marie and OUR baby is any ones family, it's mine. And the only way you'd ever be able make to me leave is to kill me." Scott said as the anger started to rise up in him.

"I'll do whatever's necessary to keep them in my life." Logan stated in a threatening tone, as he walked back towards Scott leaving the door open and took a couple of step towards him so that they were standing face to face before he spoke.

"So will I." Scott promised not backing down.

There was no more talk after that, as the tension that had been building practically since the day they had met exploded. Logan threw a punch intended to hit Scott in the ribs, which Scott blocked with his right arm as he gabbed his left fist into the almighty Wolverine's face just below his right eye. Sending Logan stumbling back where he ended up sprawled on the floor. Stunned at the power Scott still had Logan laid there for a moment fingering his cheek as the thought crossed his mind to release his blades and shred the fucker but he knew that with out his mutation Scott really had no way to defend himself and the fight was already one sided as it was with Logan's healing power.

So it looked like this was going to be a good old fashion brawl, then when Logan lifted his head so he could see the man he loathed still standing, he smirk knowing that this was going to be way too much fun. He stood and again went at Scott with fist swinging. They threw in at least a good half dozen blows before Scott once again caused Logan to stagger back from one particularly grueling punch to his left ribs.

Five minutes, a bruised cheek, couple of broken ribs, and a black eye, later Logan tackled Scott slamming them both into the coffee table. They pulled themselves up off the smashed furniture when the heard her voice as she walked into the living room wrapped in a robe and her hair dripping wet, and they could both tell already the she was very much pissed.

"What the hell is going on here…? What are the two of you thinking? No, really… You know what don't answer that because it is quite obvious by the sight of Scott and my coffee table that neither one of you were thinking at all. But hey let's forget thinking and move along to common sense, which if either of you had any, would tell you, that this is stupid. Beating the hell out of one another isn't going to get any of us anywhere." She ranted pausing only for a second to draw in another breath before continuing.

"And yeah, I get that you have the whole "He's my enemy and I got to protect my pride thing." But for me, you see I am carrying your child and you're my best friend, so I have the whole I'm going to protect my family thing. Which is more important than both of your stupid alpha male egos, so the two of you are going to find a way to coexist or I'm just going to kill you both and put my self out of this misery." Marie finally finished fuming, now slowly taking a couple of deep breathes in an effort to clam her self down.

"Marie I…" Scott knew that Marie had a right to be upset, still he was worried about her and the baby. But as soon as he saw her hand go up in the air and motion him to not say another word he didn't push it any further and kept quite to keep her from become even more livid than she already was.

"Ok… I think… I think, maybe I can stop myself from killing the both you…IF… you can both promise me, to stay were you are at and pretend that the other is not just across the room. This means NO killing, No fighting, don't even breath on one another, ok?" Marie more or less demanded from both Scott and Logan.

"Now, I am going to the bathroom to get the first aid kit and call Dr. McCoy, and so help me if I come back in here and the two of you are even so much as looking at each other the wrong way, you'll both have an 6 inch heel permanently implanted in your ass." Marie said in a huff as she turned to make her way down the hall to the bathroom.

"And so help me god if either of you make a comment about hormones I'll make sure your lives are will be a living hell until this baby is born." the retreating figure of Marie yelled over her men sit in silence while Marie was gone as she instructed.

Scott had sat down in the chair and Logan was on the couch in the same spot he had been when Scott had come over that evening. Neither looked in the others direction as Marie had order but could stop either from seething with hate for what the other meant to the beautiful women who meant the world to both of them.


	18. Is It Over

**AN: Okay guys I know it's been a very LONG while since I have updated but I just got hit with the writing bug again. I am hoping the rule better really late than never applies here, lol. Please forgiven for the grammar and typo's since I have no beta. Thanks and Enjoy ;)**

**Chapter 18 – Is It Over?**

Scott touched his now swollen cheek, and noticed that there was three small cut where Logan's claws must have creped out a little when his fist had met his face. Well Marie was right about one thing, this was stupid. He had gotten himself a swollen cheek, a couple of bruised ribs, and he was pretty sure at least three of his finger had been jammed if not broken. While the bastard was already healed with out a scratch on him, he really wished at this moment he still had his powers so he could have just blasted the prick. It most certainly would have been less painful and much quicker.

The sounds mumbling brought him away from his thoughts and he looked up to see her walk over to talk to her animal first. Scott would be lying if he said it didn't hurt him or make his stomach turn over with jealously that Marie had went to tend to man who she knew would need any medical help first instead of him.

"Logan…"

Logan leaned over and kissed her forehead lightly. "I lost you once, and it's not an option for me to lose you again. I know I wasn't always there for you, Marie. And you never failed to always be there me. So, I'll give you this. I'll let you talk it out with him. Just don't except to step completely aside. I just can't do that anymore, darlin'." He turned his back and walked out, this was a conversation he knew he didn't want his ears to hear, it was a privacy he knew after everything he owed to her. Still he could bring his feet to move any further once he was submerged in the shadows of the back patio.

Marie turned to Scott who was still sitting on the edge of the chair where he had been when Marie came back in to the room. She really didn't know where to start, and the thought had even crossed her mind for a moment that he may not even be here for her, just their baby. As quickly as the thought had came Marie pushed it away. She knew one thing, and that was she didn't want this to be a fight. She'd never wanted to fight with Scott about anything.

She walked to him and then placed a hand on each of his legs to brace herself as she knelt down to the floor in front of him. Opening the small first aid kit she had sat next to her she pulled out a cotton pad and wet it lightly with alcohol, before bringing lifting it to attend to the cuts on his face. After he let out a small hiss of pain and she took a breath it was now or never.

"There is no denying it. He is the most arrogant, condescending man God ever put breath into…" she paused and looked a the small raise of his lips as he weakly smiled at her words before she continued.

"But… he is also the one the most loving and compassionate man I ever known." Marie looked down wanting to avoid having to look at the pain she knew she was causing him with that statement. Still, she had to be truthful here she reminded her self. It was not being truthful that had gotten them in this mess to begin with and it was time they both do their part in cleaning it up.

After a moment she took another breath and raised her eyes to meet his only to find his head hung with his eyes cast to the floor. Slowly with every once of courage she had she lifted her hand to his face, letting it run over his swollen cheek and into the soft light drown threads his hair to settle on the back of his neck as she brought his piercing blue to meet her warm chocolate orbs.

She was breath taking as now as she had ever been to him, Logan's touch had done nothing to tarnish her beauty in his eyes. Looking at her now she was still his… his wife… the mother of his child. He wanted to draw her against him, but he stopped himself from doing so.

"I'm sorry Marie." Was all he could say. Simply because he was sorry for the situation she was being put in, that they were in.

"For what?" Marie smiled up at him knowing that he wasn't speaking of what had just transpired between him and Logan. She wasn't going to start kidding herself, she knew how deep the detestation ran between the two and it was just going to go away just because she wanted it to. She laughed lightly at the look he gave her next, before she continued.

"I'm sure I can assume your not talking about the fight."

"Yeah…" Scott chuckled slightly in response as he give her a small smirk.

"Scott, I need to know…." Marie surprised even herself a bit by attempting to ask the one question that'd been on her mind since discovering Scott in her home. It was one thing to wondering about, but it was quite another to simply blurt out the question if all he's here for concerning their child. Her eyes were glazed instantly with tears at the thought that there child was the only connect they would have together in the future, she wasn't sure she could handle him being such a big part of her life and not being able to be with him. She pushed herself up to her feet she blow out her breath unable to continue speaking.

Scott felt her stand, he knew she was holding something back. He looked up and watched her as she walked to the window. She was crying, he couldn't hear her but he knew her body, he knew by the way she was controlling her breath, the way her hand had just swept across the cheek of her face.

Her heart was breaking, she could feel it as it fell apart piece by piece. If she wasn't carrying there child, he probably would have never come to her at all. She couldn't deal with this, she was choking back her tears now in a useless effort to keep them from cascading down her face. Then turning towards the front door she came face to face with him.

"No. I can't go. It's time to stop running from this Marie. I made that mistake New York, and I've been living in hell ever since." Scott then moved one of his hands up her arm and underneath her chin to lift her eyes to his.

"After you left… even when we returned here, you were still with me, every where I went you were there. Being at home, back at the base was the worst, every night I would open the door and look at the couch, praying that maybe…and every night you weren't there." Scott paused a moment and swallowed hard, he had never opened up to anyone the way he had Marie. Even though he hated reliving the pain he felt being without her, he knew this was something that needed to be said. "I still have the things you left, I couldn't get raid of them, because then… then you would have been completely gone. I love you, Marie. I never stopped loving you."

"Scott, you just can't…" Marie started to protest, but this time Scott was the one to cut her words short. When his lips met hers, her mind went blank as she gave into to the passion that started coursing through her. The kiss was a gently one full of love and wanting, and when they parted there was only one question left she had for him.

"What about Jean?"

"I was wrong." Scott whispered as he kissed the curve of her neck.

"What?" she gasped with filled confused fear and pain all at once as flurry of things flew thought her mind with what he could have meant with those three words.

"I did everything wrong. I messed up Marie, but I'm going to fix it. I'm leaving Jean. The rest…." Scott said knowingly as he glanced out towards the back of her home but before meeting with her eyes once again. "The rest isn't my choice….. And I…. I will understand if you …. If it's him you choose." The last words were like knifes to his tongue as he spoke them. He placed one last small soft kiss on her lips before he backed away and left her alone knowing full well he may never get to kiss her again.

* * *

"You still love him don't you?" Logan asked as he leaned against the bedroom doorframe. "I guess he's right….Maybe, I don't know you as well as I thought."

Marie looked at him and swallowed hard as another tear fell from her eye. Yet as much as she wanted to tell him that what he was saying was wrong, that it was him she loved, had always loved, will always love, she couldn't. It wasn't that he had been replaced by Scott, or that she loved Scott more, it was simply that it was Scott hands where holding her heart hostage, no matter how much she wanted to hand it back over to Logan.

"I was so sure…. That you would never be able to love someone else the way you loved me. But at least now I know…"

"That's not true. Logan, please I …if you'll let me try to explain…" Marie said with her soft southern voice.

"Marie, stop… I love you … If there is one thing I want you to know it's that I love you…" Logan confessed realizing that the words come to his lips easier each and every time he spoke them to her. He took a seat next to her as ran a finger down her cheek only to hook under her chin. He looked into those eyes and he was lost in them, he was always at a loss when it came to Marie.

Slowly he bent his head and met her soft lips with his. It was simple, sweet, loving, nothing more than his lips on hers. And it was at that moment he knew what he was doing for her was right. Any guilt he'd had about fighting for her affections was gone in an instance. If Scott was stupid enough to give up a woman like Marie and the precious child she carried because of the obligation he felt towards Jean than that was his problem.

Logan loved her; he loved her more with every breath he took it seemed. Now as he watched her sitting curled up on the bed, seeing how much this was ripping her up inside he vowed not to let her go again. He was not going to let Scooter break her sprit or heart like this anymore, he had to protect her from being hurt again.

"You running again?" She asked in barely a whisper with her forehead resting against his, their lips still only mere inches apart, her heart starting to fill that old ache, the same way it had always hurt where he had left before, her hands shaking as closed her eyes realizing how terrified of his answer she truly was.

"No darlin'… I've told before I'm not leaving… at least not without you… But I do think that it's time we really talk about everything… with as much as I love you… as much as I want you to be mine… for this baby to be mine… I can't… I couldn't live with myself if I hurt you by keeping you and this baby… away from him…so I need to know how we are going to do this…" Logan said in a mere whisper as his heart started to fill with a pain greater than he had ever known, his hands lifted and framed her face as his thumbs softly rubbed her cheeks in slow circles. She was his world and he had to make sure they did this right, no her terms so he didn't destroy the light in her that made her shine so bright.

He had done enough damage to her, and if he had never left her she would be his, the baby would be his, it would be his family. But things were different and his promise to protect her was all that reverberation in his head now, he needed to protect her and her baby.

"I'm so sorry Logan… I do love you; I just need a little more time…" Marie started as the ache in her heart increased and the tears continued to fall down her face.

"Don't… say it… don't… promise me something that you don't know for sure you will be able to give…. this isn't good-bye kid; and I sure as hell am not given up that easy. I learned the hard way what it was like to live without you, and that is not a life I ever want to go back to." Logan said with his last words putting his trademark smirk on his lips.

That of course was when the phone rang. After brushing a few of her tears away with his thumb Logan rose for the bed and pushed the speaker button to the phone. "Yeah." was all he said for the person on the other end of the line to know it was there turn to speak.

"Logan? Logan is Rouge with you?" Kitty all but yelled hurriedly through the phone.

"Yeah." Logan simply replied yet again.

"You both are needed up here….like now."

"We're on our way, okay. Just clam down before you go into labor."

"Men are such asses."

* * *

"Scott, honey… hey, are you ok?" Jean asked with concern and caring in her voice as she took a seat beside her future husband on the bed as she started rubbing his back gently with a loving hand. God, how she loved this man. How she had ever been so foolish to think she would have been happy with someone else still escaped her.

"Look, I know that you were a little upset with me yesterday for just walking in on you and Rogue but I could sense the tension in that room from the other side of the mansion. I just thought maybe if I…" Jean stopped mid confession as he turned to look at her with those amazing blue eyes, hearing his thoughts as if he had spoken each word out loud. "No…"

"I'm sorry." Scott said as he watched her eyes pool with tears that would soon spill over.

"When? When did this happen…. I mean are you even sure it's yours." Jean asked as her heart clenched not wanting to accept the fact that another woman could be giving Scott the child she had known he had always wanted. A child that he had always asked her to give him.

"The baby's mine, Jean." Scott stated as ran his hand through his hair and looked at her again to see the tears from the pain he was causing her now falling.

"But maybe…. Maybe it's not…. I mean everyone knows that she and Logan…"Jean tried to remind him as she brushed a hand across her face trying her best to stop her tears.

"Enough…. I know your hurt by this. But telling me that Logan could have been the father of a child that IS mine really is not what I want or need to hear right now." Scott said a little irritated that Jean would bring up Marie's affair with Logan now. As if Scott didn't already know enough, seen enough of what Logan was to his wife for himself.

"So…. Is that how you still think of her…. as your wife." Jean stated in an angered and pained voice as she snuck a peek into his head to see exactly how he knew the child was his, only to find out exactly where she stood. This was not happening, Scott loved her. Her not some brunette kid and that had only pretended to play his wife while her lover Logan had been away. Standing up she breathed in deep as a fury she knew all too well started to build inside of her.

"Jean, I'm sorry… I never meant…"

"Tell me you don't love her Scott."

"I can't. I won't."

"I said tell me you don't love…." Jean began to yell again only to be interrupted by a short rap on their door before Bobby opened it sticking his head in the room.

"Hey you guys the Professor needs everyone in his office now. It's somewhat of an emergency." Bobby informed then before running down the hall leaving their door wide open as Scott quickly followed him leaving Jean standing a little shocked and completely infuriated in the room.

* * *

A/N: Okay I am sure that some of you guys are wondering why the Professor didn't just use his telepathy on Jean, Scott, Rogue, and Logan. Well the way I see it I am positive that the Professor would have seen what intense conversations these two couples where having and the last thing any couple wants is for someone to be in the room with them when they are talking like that. So in my mind I believe that the Professor would have opted to be polite enough to tell Kitty and Bobby contact them in a more conventional way so they wouldn't feel as intruded upon.


	19. Back To The Frontline

**A/N: ****Okay you guys I know that it is short and I am sorry but it was kind of unavoidable. I hope you guys enjoy regardless. ;)**

**Chapter 19 - Back To The Frontline**

"I know that you are all a little confused as to why I called all of you in here this way, and while the situation dose happen to be an emergency of sorts, there did not seem to be a reason for me to sound the alarm. Yes, there will be a mission that will be assigned at the end of this meeting which is of strong urgency, so the faster we get through this briefing the better..." Professor Xavier explained in his usual claming tone and manner that has always preceded him. Pausing a short moment of time he looked around the room in confirmation that all of his members of the X-team was on the same page as he was before continuing his debriefing.

"No more than an hour ago Dr. McCoy transferred a rather disturbing call to me from a Marine that Dr McCoy works with, a one Cornel Garrard. Scott, Rogue I believe you may know him as well. With that said I am sure that most, if not all of you will recall Scott and Rouge's time in the compound known as Sanctuary 99. It's seem that we were not the only one's to find out about the existence of the compound, a group of Mutant Rebels we believe may still be connected to Magneto attacked the compound a little over three hours ago this morning. Destroying and killing most of everything and everyone inside."

"Are there any survivors?" Tears sprung to Marie's eyes as she unconsciously grabbed the hand of Logan who was sitting next to her with a confused expression on his face. Jase, Jenna, Gabby, and Dom they would have all been there. They had been her and Scott's closest friends for more than a year.

"Yes Rogue. Dr. McCoy and Cornel Garrard have reason to believe there is." the Professor confirmed for her hearing her thoughts as she silently screamed them inside.

"How many?" Scott questioned as he ran a hand over his face. He knew what she was thinking, he knew how scared she was, and he knew why she had grabbed for that bastard's hand. He used to be the one to give and show her comfort. Keeping his eyes down cast he did his best to focus on the situation at hand, and not seeing what right in front of him was the easiest way to do that. Something that Scott had to sadly admit he had gotten amazing good at the last three months.

"We are not sure but we do know that a group of them has contained themselves in an underground storm shelter."

"Has Garrard sent any troops in for rescue?" Scott questioned in his usual leader mode.

"Unfortunately that is why we are sitting here; it seems we are addressing a couple of different issues here. Because of the nature of the attack and the fact that there was a band of mutant's behind it, the Government has ruled it a total lost and are abandoning all knowledge, connections, and documentation of its existence."

"So they are just leaving whatever men, women and children that could still be alive in there to die." Scott asked with a dead tone knowing that it was more of a statement than a question.

"Yes, this is where we come in. Since you have inside knowledge of the compound I will be sending you, Logan, Jubilee, Kurt, Hank, Ororo and Bobby to the compound for reconnaissance and rescue of those who are willing to come with you. Considering the fact that these people were trying to escape a world were mutants existed for fear of their own safest, only to be attacked by a band of what very could the remains of the brotherhood; I am not sure how many will be agreeable to accepting the help we offer them. Regardless they need to be informed that their government has left them for dead and that we are the only help that's coming." the Professor spoke in tone edge with uncommon irritation as he folded his hands together and placed them in his lap.

"Professor I know the compounds layout just as well as Scott dose, I could…" Marie began raising to her feet and walking to position herself in front of his desk, her mind still racing with thoughts that the friends she and Scott had left behind, trapped inside a bunker or their homes dying or in pain.

"NO!" Logan and Scott both automatically responded.

"That's not for either of you to decide I am a grown woman." She argued as she turned to face Scott with straight tense shoulders, raising her head up high.

"A woman who's happens pregnant." Logan voiced from behind her still seated at on the couch, in little hurt by the fact that is was the Wonder Boy she turned to for permission, support, understanding and whatever is was she needed from him. All he knew was that he wanted it to be him she turned to even if it was just to fight; he wanted her to always turn to him.

"With my child." Scott voiced softly as a reminder for the beast whom he let steal his everything, his eyes never leaving the hold of Maries chocolate brown orbs that were filled with worry.

"But if the attack is already over…" Marie continued to press the issue as she took a step in her husbands' direction.

"No, Marie… It could still be dangerous, you and our baby is not something I'm willing to risk." He said with a finality of the leader he was; as he too took a step towards her not backing down, before lighting his tone and raising his hand to brush a stand of her out of her face as he explained why his decision wouldn't be changed.

"I could…" she continued grasping at the faint hope that she would be allowed to go with him, back to the place that had been their home.

"It's not happen darlin' even if I have to lock your ass in one of the holding cells down stairs to make sure it doesn't." Logan promised her as she stood to walk behind her placing his hands on her shoulder. It hurt him to watch her look at Scott this way; he needed to bring her attention back to him before he lost what little sanity he was holding on to.

She knew they were right, feeling Logan's hand lock on to her shoulder she turned to look at him. She knew some where inside her that Scott's denial of her accompanying him on their mission had been for her protection but it took Logan siding with him for her to realize it. As a feeling of shame creped up her spine for not thinking of the child's safety first Marie let her eyes turn back to Scott as only to catch the last of his retreating form as he made his way out of the door.

* * *

The site made him nauseas; the place that had been their home, where they had found love, laughter, and friends was almost completely decimated.

"Storm, set the jet down over on the south end of the runway, we can make our way up the strip help any survivors that we can find. The storm barricade is located on the opposite side of compound, so this way we can make sure that all the ground has been covered."

"Sure thing." Storm replied and she began the descent and preparing the jet to make it's landing while Scott turned and faced the others.

"Okay as for the rest of you, try to keep from using your powers unless it is absolute necessary, Logan and Jubilee take the left side of the strip, it is mostly the government building which is all locked down at this point I'm sure. I guessing that won't be much of a problem for you two."

"Nope, no problem at all." Jubilee smiled with a cheery voice as she stood next to Logan and turn to salute Scott.

Logan just raised he right eyebrow and let his middle claw pop up to show his leader exactly how much he appreciated the confidence that Cyke in his ability to get his part of the mission done.

"Good. Bobby your coming with me we'll take the other side of the strip. Kurt just be ready to transport all of the injured to the jet. Ororo keep the jet running and ready, help Hank with the injured and get everyone else seated." By the look on everyone face Scott know that they all understood what it was they needed to do in order for them to work as and team and for this mission to go smoothly, after seeing a few nods to affirm their leaders plan, he turned back to the front of the jet as Storm set it on the ground.

With out another word Scott pressed the lift button and walked out of the jet to the charred ground of the compound. Most of the structure were no longer existed; there were only a few houses left standing and half of those were completely engulfed in flames, all of the businesses had been leveled.

The smell of smoke, ash, and death lingered through the air. There were bodies that were so mangled they were unidentifiable, and then there were some he would have known without the dog tags that lay around there neck. Micgilless was one of the bodies he had recognized, he was young, only 20; he had just transferred to the Sanctuary a month before he and Marie had left. Now he was dead shot between his eyes with what looked like a long thin spike.

One by one pulse's were checked of those who looked like they could be alive, half down the strip only four lives had been transported to the jet and Scott spotted one of the few people he'd prayed had made it out alive.

"Dom…Dom… shit, come on man talk to me." Scott yelled out as she ran to one of his closest friends in the past year. He knelt down beside him and took in the damage. He had one of the same long sharp spikes that had killed Micgilless sticking out from his left shoulder and there was a good size gash on near the bottom of his rib cage area on the same side.

"Is he alive?" Kurt asked as he appeared behind Scott out of nowhere his German accent as thick and strong as ever.

"Yeah, yeah I think he is." He nodded mindlessly as he felt Dom's pulse beat under his middle and fore finger.

"Looks like he pulled one out." Kurt assessed as he picked up a similar spike half cover in blood near where they squatting.

"Looks like he did. Here take him and the spike with you back to the jet, have Hank check and see if those things are poisoned."

Kurt held firmly to the spike and reached out his free hand to the man on the ground, and did as he was told with out another word.

Scott watched as Nightcrawler place a hand on his friends' chest and in a flash he was gone. With unsteady hands Scott palmed the gun the laid forgotten on the ground then raised his eyes to look as the devastation that lay out before him yet again. This made no sense, these people were innocent people who had never done anything more than try to hide from the ones who had attacked them. They were scared of the unknown and in the end a lot of good people had died because of it.

Two more soldiers were all they found left clinging to life before they reached the other end of the compound where the underground storm shelter was located. Scott took a moment to contact Storm instructing her and Hank to do what they can to stabilize the soldiers who were on board and then move the jet as close as she could to where they were. With the destruction, friends and family that now lay littered across the grounds, Scott did not want any of the survivors to have to walk through the remains of their home the way he just had. After the trauma of the attack they had all just suffered it simply would have been too much for them to bear.

"Okay, the door lock from the inside so our best bet is for Logan to cut through. After you've done that I think its best if I go in and explain what is going on. Once we start loading people we are going to have to make sure it's a straight line from here to the plane, get them loaded as quickly and safely as possible. Once loaded we will be dropping those who no longer want our help off at the Wilkes-Barre airport with Cornel Garrard in Scranton before heading back to the mansion." Scott explained to the group of them as she gathered around the doors.

"Are you done yapping?" Logan prodded Scott as he got his claw ready to cut through the locks.

Scott responded only with a hand gesture towards the door as he took a step back, damn he really didn't like the self righteous bastard.

After seeing the state that their home was in no one refused to board the plane, family members claimed the injured quickly as Scott called out their names once they had the jet in the air and on the way the airport where Cornel Garrard was waiting. Once the plane was emptied at the airport Scott was pleased to see that his friends had chosen to stay. He knew that Marie would not only be relieved to see them all alive, but the Dom would receive the best treatment for his wounds there.

Sure enough Marie was waiting in the docking bay when the jet landed. It only took her a faction of a second to spot a frantic Gabby as she walked out beside Dom strapped to a gurney.

"Oh god…no." she gasped as she ran to meet them.

"Is he okay?" she all but yelled as at Hank as he walked quickly past her.

"Marie, oh honey thank god you're here." Gabby said in a rush of words as she clung to her neck.

"How bad is he... is Jace okay… was there still fighting going… Scott do you know if Scott is…" was all she managed before Gabby began to explain in a sobbing voice.

"Marie, hon. you need to claim down…he's fine… Jace and Jenna were helping Scott and the others clean up the jet. Dom is hurt but he's going to be fine. Dr. McCoy had to knock his dumb ass out because when he came to in the jet he went stupid and starting trying to kill the poor man." Gabby explained in a rush of breath as she grabbed her friend by the shoulders. Wasn't this suppose to be the other way around, Gabby giggled a little to herself before running a hand through her hair.

"I'm so sorry Gabs." Marie choked out as her hormones took over her and she broke out into sobs. This was all back wards, Dom was the one who was laying in the medical station with Hank attending to him and yet here her friend was gathering Marie in her arms and giving her comfort because for the briefest seconded she had let her mind picture Scott spread out on the similar gurney broken and bleeding. Marie curled her arms around Gabby as she too broke into sobs.

"Hey if it's a girl crying session going on here I get to be in on it too you know." Jenna said in an already whiney voice as she wiggled her way into the circle.

"Why are you crying?" Bobby asked a few feet away as he looked down baffled at his wife's face covered with tears.

"I don't know." Kitty welled as she covered her face embarrassed, and she really didn't know. Ever since her husband had impregnated her she couldn't explain it but no ever cried alone in her present.

"Oh Kit, come mere sweetie." Rouge said a she and her friends opened their arms to welcome Kitty into their little fest of hormones and tears.

"I don't get it." Bobby said as he stared unbelieving at the group of females as the huddled together with his wife.


End file.
